Lonely Souls
by Navypink
Summary: Oka Ruto has always been misunderstood and bullied. Taro Yamada has just lost his best friend. She has never loved, but this could be her first time. He needs someone to fill the emptiness in his heart. However, they have no idea that someone is watching them. Cover art by me. Rated M for blood and gore, demons, suggestive themes, and minor swearing.
1. Prologue

**Author's notes:** This is my first story and English is not my first language, Yandere Simulator belongs to YandereDev.

 **Monday, before school**

Oka's POV

It was 7 AM in the morning when Oka Ruto finally woke up. The curtains in her room were dark and thick, so the sunlight couldn't wake her up. Usually, she would get up around 6 AM, but she just had to oversleep that morning, didn't she?

The girl slowly opened her eyes. She reached out for her phone to theck the time. When the screen lit up, her eyes snapped open as she realized how late it was. She was going to be late for class, once again, unless she rushed out of her house immidiately _._ She couldn't help it. The nights were too beautyful for sleeping.

She put on the school uniform, her dark stockings and matching arm warmers, and threw the chocker into her bag, before she threw it over shoulder and ran out of her room. She put her shoes on and quickly glanced at the mirror on the nearest wall. She had clearly visible dark circles under her eyes, and her hair, a mess like always, was casting a shadow onto her pale skin. At least she didn't need any additional make-up that morning, so she got out out of the house and rushed to school.

She ran for a few moments before she got tired and started panting. As she turned another corner, she saw her classmate, Taro Yamada. He was walking alone, which was weird, considering the fact that, until today, she always saw him hanging out with Kokona Haruka, the leader of the Drama Club. Oka Ruto wasn't really aware of most things that happened at school which didnt really concern her, but she did notice that they were most likely close friends, if not more. So it was surprising, seeing him walk alone.

He seemed slightly depressed, so Oka, against her better judgement, decided to approach him. He looked like he needed to talk to someone, so she would gladly help him. Even if she was considered a loner, she actually cared about other students. She sped up and walked next to him for a few moments, examining him, and thinking about how to start a conversation, before hesitantly speaking up.

"... hi, Taro" she just said, hoping to gain his attention. Her classmate turned his head to face her. He was still silent so she just asked: "Why are you walking alone?"

Taro had a questioning look on his face before Oka added: "I always saw you with Haruka-san. I thought you two were close".

When she said that, she saw his face become more depressed than before. He looked down at his feet, not saying anything for a while, so she had a chance to take a closer look at his face. She knew many girls liked him. It was no surprise, since he was really nice to everyone, even people like her. What she didn't pay much attention to, at least until now, was that he was also quite handsome. His charcoal eyes matched his dark, messy hair. She realised why that many girls fell for him. Unfourtunately, he wasn't very lucky when it came to romance.

Osana Najimi, his childhood friend who was rumored to like him, was expelled two weeks ago. Amai Odayaka, the cooking club president confessed to her friends that she had a huge crush on him, but weirdly enough she decided not to tell Taro and since then, she seemed to even avoid him. And now Kokona... Oka had no idea what happened, but she wasn't stupid. She knew something was wrong.

"Kokona-chan went missing on Friday. Nobody has seen her since then..." Taro explained quietly. Oka's eyes went wide. What has happened to her? Could it be...? _'Stupid!'_ she scolded herself mentally. She wasn't that much interested in Kokona, as she was in Taro's well-being. She wasn't going to just ask him about everything. It would be very rude of her, seeing his state. She had to comfort him. She knew he wasn't okay with talking about what happened to Kokona. His eyes were just a bit wet with tears.

''I'm so sorry'' she said, trying to maintain eye contact. She was being honest, she hadn't heard anything about Kokona's disappearence. "'I had no idea-"

He nodded quietly. The tears were almost gone and he smiled softly. ''It's okay" he stopped her from saying anything else. His smile was so charming at that moment.

Taro's POV

He must had been in a very bad state if Oka Ruto decided to ask him what's wrong.

She never talked to other students, except the other members of the Occult Club. She had a reputation of a loner and an overall freak, so nobody even bothered to talk to her. And yet, Taro noticed she was somewhat concerned about him and Kokona. She was very shy and quiet, but she was the one to talk first, which he would've never expected from her. Maybe there was more to her than just a weirdo that no one ever noticed. She was simply too shy to ever show others the better side of herself. He never really thought about it like that, but now that it occurred to him, he was sure it was true.

They walked together for a while without saying anything. It might'd bothered some people, but Taro didn't like talking too much, and he felt like there was nothing else to be said, so the silence was perfectly fine for him. Taro never considered Oka weird or stupid because of her interest in the occult.

Of course, he didn't believe any of it, but he never saw Oka as someone to make fun of. On the contrary, he actually found her pretty cute.

And she'd just given him the chance to talk to her. Taro was sure he was going to use this opprotunity to make a new friend. He needed someone to fill the empty space Kokona left, and Osana before her. This emptiness in his heart.

Oka's POV

They walked in silence until they reached the school grounds, and stopped near the lockers. They chatted for a while, before they realized it was pretty late and they should be heading to class.

''So..." Tar started, a bit awkwardly. ''I'll see you in class, Oka!" And with that, he turned around to walk to his locker.

''See you..." Oka whispered, knowing he wouldn't hear her. As she watched Taro walk away, she felt something... new. What was it? He was so nice to her, and she felt very sorry for him after she'd heard about Kokona. But there was still that unknown, new feeling in her chest, that she couldn't quite describe, when she thought about him. She stood near the entrance of the school, frozen, for what seemed like forever. After a few moments, she blinked a few times to focus back on the reality. She made a choice. She was always a very curious person. And that strange feeling fascinated her beyond belief. She had to spend more time with Taro. She wasn't going to let go of it. It was making her happy, and it was beautyful.

With that new energy filling her, she quickly walked to her locker, changed her shoes and hurried to her classrom to seat by her desk next to Taro's.

Shin's POV

Shin Higaku was standing by his locker when he heard a familiar voice. He didn't have to look to recognize the girl by the entrance of the school.

''What... what are you doing on lunchtime, Taro?"

 _'Taro'_? Taro Yamada...? It was the boy from Oka's class, the one who Kokona Haruka was rumored to have a crush on, and Osana Najimi before her. Why was Oka talking to him...? They didn't even know eachother until now, he was sure of it... That was... unusual, to say the least. And why was she asking him to hang out with her? They always met on lunchtime, had she forgotten that she had responsibilites as a club leader?

''Oh, not much. I think i'm just gonna sit in the plaza and eat my lunch. What about you?"

Shin listened closely. He understood Oka didn't want to scare Taro off by mentioning the Occult Club., Why didn't she say the truth, though? He never lied, and he believed it was a rule that more people should respect. Especially when talking to someone they'd just met. She was going to go to her club, have a meeting, and go back to class, just like she always did. And if she said something that Taro wouldn't like, she wouldn't have a choice but to hang out with her clubmates.

Oka stayed quiet for a while, and said:

''I'm... I'm going to..." she hesitated for a brief moment. At first, he was sure she was going to decline, but her hesitation was enough to give away the lie. ''I don't really have anything particular to do, so I guess... I guess I could join you, if that's fine"

Did she really choose hanging out with Taro over her club? Lunchtime was always special, since over a year now, it was the time when she'd abondon her personal research regarding the Basu sisters and spent time with the people who understood her. Who appreciated her as a leader. Who trusted her and maybe even... cared about her...? And she threw it all away just to be with the person she spoke to for the first time? How could she betray them like this...? What was so special about Taro Yamada, about spending time with him? Was he really _SUCH an amazing person_ that he made her forget her duties?

''That would be great" Taro responded. Shin couldn't see his face, but he could tell he was smiling. The bastard. He probably had no idea what he just did. ''We could actually walk to the plaza together, since we're in the same class, too"

No way. Was he flirting with Oka? No-one ever flirted with her, he would know. Oka never had a boyfriend, and was never interested in romance, since she was spending all of her free time in the club. What happened to her? And why was it making him so anxious?

Being in the same class and enjoying eachother's company was not an excuse to spend all the time together. Taro clearly wanted Oka to spend time with him. Shin knew she was very shy and rarely disagreed with others, as she didn't want to make anyone upset. So when Taro asked her to spend even more time with him, she practicaly had no choice but to obey. From his limited experience with Oka, he knew she shouldn't be forced to do anything. Even if she was unhappy with her actions, she wouldn't show it. But Taro couldn't possibly had known about this. The ignorant fool.

''Um... I mean... ehh...'' Oka muttered, clearly at a loss of words. She was always shy, so it was no surprise that when someone pushed too far, she was going to feel very uncomfortable.

''….Excuse me, what did you say...?" Taro asked. Even if it was unintentional, he was clearly making Oka uncomfortable. He'd be a complete idiot if he didn't realize how was Oka feeling. And if he was doing it on purpose, just to make her say what he wanted to hear, Taro Yamada was truly a horrible person. Either way, Shin did not like him at all and would never trust him enough to leave Oka alone with him.

''I meant..." he heard Oka's quiet response. ''I would love to spent lunchtime with you"

She gave up. He recognized it in her voice when she said this. Her tone was weak and hesitant, she didn't really want to obey. But she did. And it was all that mattered to him at that moment.

Oka abandoned them. Even if she didn't want to, she did. She would spent the whole day with Taro, and maybe even leave the school with him. No. She had to come to lead the club activities. If she didn't, she was going to be in serious trouble. He dared to look at her, who was now standing alone, completely frozen. As he watched Oka, he began to wonder what just happened. Was he jalous, after seeing her talk like that with Taro? He knew one thing – he couldn't stand seeing her hurt or manipulated by him. It just wasn't right. Of course, he wasn't sure if Taro was doing something to her on purpose, but Shin had to make sure she wasn't harmed in any way. So he decided to find out more about them. He wouldn't want it to escalate into something... more than just friends.

 **Author's notes:** Leave a review if you enjoyed the story. This was actually supposed to be a short and sweet fanfic about Oka and... one of the boys (I'm not telling you who it was supposed to be, since that would be pretty much a spoiler) but it turned out better than I was expecting, and well... I decided to make it longer. This version is fixed, so I can rpoudly say that when I'm writing those words, the story is twenty chapters long.

Anyway, tell me in the comments if you ship OkaxTaro or OkaxShin.

See you!


	2. Under the cherry trees

**Classtime, Monday**

Oka's POV

Class was almost over and Oka glanced at the clock, nervous. Once the bell would ring, she would go to the plaza with Taro. Even though the thought of spending time with him excited her, it was something new and refreshing, she still felt really bad about leaving her clubmates alone. _'They are going to be fine'_ she kept repeating to herself. She knew they could take care of themselves, but she was actually more worried about herself at that moment. What was going on with her? How could she do something so reckless, so... stupid, choose Taro over everything she cared about? But then she remembered that her club wasn't the only thing that she cared about. Not anymore, at least. One day without going to her clubroom was surely worth it. _He was worth it_. After all, she would go to her clubroom after classes, for the club meeting. It's not like anyone cared if she was there or not. So it was perfectly fine if she gave herself a bit of freedom.

She looked at Taro, who was sitting next to her. He looked back and she smiled softly. She quickly looked away, pretending to focus on her notebook, which, to be honest, was just a bunch of creepy looking drawings and very few actual notes, just enough to pass all the exams.

The sound of the bell interrupted Oka's thoughts. She quickly gathered her belongings and left the classroom. Once outside, she was approached by Taro.

''Hey, Oka'' he greeted her cheerfully. She still wasn't used to talking with him like that, so she was a bit startled. ''Um, sorry" he scratched the back of his neck, seeing her reaction. ''I didn't want to scare you" Oka smiled, feeling a bit more confident. He was so considerate. Most people wouldn't even notice that she was uncomfortable.

''I-I'm fine, thank you. Let's go" she said, wanting to change the subject. They walked down the stairs, side by side. She was always weirdely aware of where he was, either slightly behind her, or next to her, and she felt slightly... uneasy in his presence, yet she had no idea why. No, that wasn't the right word. Nervous, and thrilled were more accurate.

Once they reached the first floor, Oka froze suddenly, and stared blankly at the far wall, like she was completely unaware of the world around her. Taro stopped when he saw this and looked at her, slightly concerned. He had no idea why she reacted that way, but she didn't want him to know.

''Is something wrong?'' he asked. Oka shook her head quickly, trying to regain her composure. Just like she usually did, she failed miserably.

''No, it's nothing..." she told him, and he could probably see right through her as she said this, but he didn't ask her anything else. She was trying to convince herself that it was alright, too. ''Let's just keep going" she focused on Taro's face, almost pleading him to forget it and just keep going. He didn't quite understand what was going through her head, but he didn't question it and they continued to walk towards the plaza.

She froze, seeing the door of her clubroom. The place where she was supposed to be, but she wasn't. She failed her duties, she failed her friends... She tried not to think about it too much, but it all came back once she realized where they were, so the only thing she could do was repeating to herself: _'Just don't stop, keep going, don't even think about it..'_ But she got completely paralyzed then. She shook her head, trying to regain focus. She had to live with whatever choices she'd made. And hopefully, she wouldn't regret them.

Shin's POV

Taro wasn't the only one to notice Oka's strange behaviour. Shin was sitting in the occult club in his usual spot, reading a book, when he heard two students walking down the stairs right outside of the room. He got up and stood next to Chojo Tekina's chair. The underclassman looked at him, confused, but didn't say anything and got back to reading his book. All of the clubmates were used to him. Shin focused on the sounds coming from the other side of the wall. He heard the sound of footsteps stop.

''Is something wrong?'' He heard Taro Yamada's voice. Strange, how they kept running into eachother today, unknowingly to Taro. Then he remembered Oka was going to spend lunchtime with her classmate. Which meant they had to be together right now. He listened ever closer, way more intrigued than before.

''No, it's... it's nothing" Oka's voice sounded even weaker and quieter than usual. She seemed nervous, even terrified. Did seeing her clubroom make her question her own choice to go wih Taro? Maybe she regretted it. Maybe she didn't want to betray them like that. But then again, it was her choice. And there was no-one to blame for it but her. Either way, she was going to spend lunchtime with Taro, so it didn't really matter if she regretted it or not.

''Let's just keep going" he heard her say, hesitantly. Taro was quiet for a moment, but then he heard the two walk away. When he heard a door open, he made a choice. He would surely regret it later, but he had to know what was going on beetween Oka and Taro. He wouldn't let go so easily.

Before he left, he looked back at Supana Churu, who was staring at him this entire time. He threw his book to her, and she cought it quickly. He nodded slightly and then he opened the door and headed to the plaza.

He reached the nearest door leading to the courtyard. It was open, so he concluded that Oka and Yamada-san went through it. He started listening carefully to the sounds coming from the plaza, but they were too far away for him to hear anything they said. So he closed the door slowly, just to make sure nobody would see him. After closing the door, he passed it and walked to the next one. It was closed, so he leaned against a wall and listened closely.

Oka's POV

Taro Yamada looked so bautyful with his dark hair flowing in the breeze. They were alone, sitting on the fountain with nobody to disturb them. Oka watched him carefully, studying every detail of his face, as they sat toghether in the center of the plaza. The girl realized they were sitting very close to one another. She felt a strange feeling in her stormach when she realized it. Before she could think more about it, she turned her head to the right,and saw something that cought her attention. One of the doors was slowly closing, most likely because of the wind. After all, the pink petals of the cherry trees around them were flying everywhere, so it was no surprise that the wind could move one of the doors. When the door closed, however, it was opened again by the wind, just enough for Oka to catch a glimpse of a person quickly walking through the corridor. It was a dark blueish-haired student, so an occult club member. Judging by his height, it was Shin Higaku, her clubmate.

Although the Occult Club's members weren't very talkative, Oka had quite a few chances to speak to Shin. He was the first one to join her club, over a year ago when Oka founded it. He helped her convince a few first year students to join the new club, which, to be honest, wasn't an easy task. But he was so dedicated to the club, and it was mainly because of him anyone even wanted to join it. That's when the Occult Club was officially started. She would never forget the headmaster's expression when they showed him a list of students who signed up to join it. And he had no choice but to accept it.

Oka usually talked to Shin a few times per week, after school before the club meetings, but most of the time their conversations weren't very long. During their limited interactions, she managed to get to know him just a little bit. But it was quite hard, since he wasn't very social, and most people couldn't really figure him out. His thoughts and emotions were a mystery even for Oka, and she was almost sure none of the students spent nearly as much time with him as her. He had a pretty bad reputation, just like almost everyone in the Occult Club. Most of the students preferred to stay as far away from him as possible. It was... understandable. Shin was way more impulsive than Oka, and nobody could predict how he would react to certain things. And while she didn't talk much to other students because of her shyness and fear of denial, Oka felt like he didn't talk to other people because he didn't want to.

But Oka knew him well enough to trust him to be the temporary club leader in case she was gone, So he shouldn't be walking around the school during lunchtime. It was... strange, he was always so devoted to their research. What made him ditch a meeting? On the other hand, she was also not present on the meeting, so she shouldn't complain about his.. unusual activities. It still troubled her, though, and decided to ask him about it after school would end.

She felt someone poke her arm gently, and she nearly jumped in surprise. She turned her head to see Taro sitting next to her. She completely forgot about him.

''Oh, sorry..." she muttered. Taro shrugged and smiled at her, like he knew extacly what she was feeling. At least he wasn't bothered by her spacing out and forgetting about everyone around her. He was almost too good to be true...

''So, Oka..." he started, and she knew extacly what he was about to ask. ''You're the president of the Occult Club, right?" Of course. Everyone asked that question sooner or later. It was everything most people knew about her at school. It was the first thing they learned when they came here. To stay away from her because she was 'creepy'. She still decided to try to be honest with Taro, hoping for the best.

''Yes" she nodded. "We are devoted to the research of supernatural and paranormal phenomena" she cleared her throat. ''I founded this club"

Taro smiled. "That's cool" he simply said.

Oka blinked a few times before realizing what he just said. He was okay with her being intrested in the paranormal? Most people would have freaked out by now, but not him. ''And you?'' she asked Taro. "Are you a member of one of the clubs?"

Taro shook his head.

"I'm not" he answered. "I just... I don't know, I haven't found my place yet. So I'm still going through life, trying everything and discovering the world around me. I think it's better that way. It's kind of a freedom. Not being bound to anything just yet. We're still in highschool, after all".

Oka looked at the sky as she contemplated his words. She never thought about life like that. She liked being in the Occult Club, belonging somewhere. But what he said, the freedom he talked about... it was tempting beyond belief.

"I never thought about that" she said. "But... maybe you're right"

Taro was quiet. So she continued talking.

"You know, when I first came to this school two years ago, I was hoping to find friends, people who would understand me, or at least 'be normal' how my parents call it. I tried so hard to make people like me... when I think about it now, it seems like they weren't trying at all... I was pretending to be someone I'm not, just to make friends, but... I failed.."

She paused to see his reaction. He smiled reassuringly, encouraging her to continue talking.

Shin's POV

Shin was still standing on the other side of the wall, just outside the courtyard, so he heard everything they said. And, more importantly what Oka just said. She never told him about her feelings, they barely even talked to eachother. But Taro Yamada...? That was just ridicolous. They had a first real conversation a few hours ago, and she was so honest... He couldn't deny it now, he was jelous. Jelous of Taro. Particularly of how he seemed to have twisted Oka around his little finger in just one day. _He hated him so much._ Somehow, he knew Taro didn't deserve to spend time with her. Or maybe it was all because he wanted to be like him. But this could never happen. Taro took Oka away from him. And as far as he could tell, as Oka was getting closer with Taro, she was drifting away from him. And it hurt, knowing she chose a boy she spoke to for the first time today over both him _and_ her club.

He looked down, listening to what Oka was saying now.

"But, as time passed, they realized what I'm really like. They saw me as a freak"

They were all freaks, for most of the students. Shin got used to it, he was pretending not to care, scaring everyone off by avoiding them and always hiding what he was really like. But Oka was way more fragile and sensitive. She cared what people thought about her and it hurt her deeply. Shin never realized she felt like that. He should've figured it out, he should've helped her when she needed it. And now she was telling Taro about her problems, because she had no one else to talk to. It was a perfect opprotunity for him to gain her trust by comforting her.

''So I stopped pretending when I knew they all thought so low of me. I was lonely for the rest of my first year of highschool. But then, when I came to school for the second year, I decided to be myself and created the Occult Club. I was able to gather enough students to found it pretty quickly..."

Shin remembered how their club was created. He met Oka a year ago, and when she told him about the idea of founding a club dedicated to the paranormal, he immidiately decided to help her. He convinced Supana and Chojo to join them, and they stayed. There were also two underclassmans who left the club at the end of the previous school year. During the last but one club meeting, they informed Oka they didn't want to stay in the club for the next year. He still remembered it like it was yesterday...

 _The next day he came to the Occult Club's room a bit earlier than usual. When he opened the door, he saw Oka sitting in the middle of the room, sobbing. He couldn't see her face, but she was most likely crying. It was the first and last time he'd seen her cry. She was hiding it well, but he knew she was extremely sensitive. He didn't have the courage to come in and help her then. He would have now. He closed the door and walked away, without Oka noticing he ever saw her, feeling like the worst person alive._

He managed focus on the reality again, and kept listening to what Oka was saying.

"I finally I had somewhere I could come back to. I had people who I trusted. I was so happy, Taro..."

Shin felt his lips curve into an almost invisible smile. It was weird. He never smiled. He rarely showed any sign of emotion, exspecially joy. But it made him happy, knowing that creating the Occult Club made Oka feel better about her life. Honestly, he was sure all of their clubmates were happy to be in the club. And it made everything easier, having people you can call "friends". Even he was accepted among them, as horrible as he was.

"But... even when I'm spending a lot of time with the rest of the Occult Club, I still..." she paused, and Shin listened closely. "I can't bear the look many student give me when they see me at school. They're disgusted. They look at me like I'm an intruder in the school, like I just don't fit in. Then they just whisper to one another and I know they are talking about me. It hurts... I-I can't..."

She stopped. Shin heard her trying to hold back a sob. He could imagine her eyes right now, full of tears. She was trying to calm her breathing, but she just couldn't and he heard a muffled sob.

 _There._ He's never seen Oka in such a vulnerable state. Exspecially not in front of somebody else. Taro had so much power over her in that moment. He could break her heart, or he could help her and move their relationship forward. Shin wasn't sure what he would be more happy about.

He felt so sorry for Oka. But most of all he hated himself for not helping her in any way, nor realizing how she felt this entire time. Was he this ignorant? This stupid? He was wondering what Taro would do now. Well, _he_ would probably just stare at her in the most awkward way possible until she'd calm down. He never understood people's feelings, so it was almost impossible for him to comfort someone.

"That's funny" he heard Taro say. _'What?!'_ Did he really consider Oka's problems _funny?_ Was he really such an idiot? Or did he just have a very sick and cruel sense of humor? Oka was silent. He would also be silent in the situation she was in at that moment. "I think we may have a lot in common"

 _Oh._ Well, at least he wasted a perfect opprotunity to get closer to Oka. And... he didn't make her very upset.

"Really?" she asked, and he heard her sniff. Any traces of tears should be gone before class'd begin. Good. At least Oka didn't have to worry about being known as a crybaby.

"I don't really like spending time with other people" he said. _Oh, for God's sake..._ Taro thought he was so special, so interesting. And all Shin saw in him was a completely average and boring schoolboy who was pretending to be intelligent and complex. He hated people who hid their true nature. Who pretended to be better than they really were. And him...? He didn't even bother to make a good impression on people. Plus, Taro had no right to compare himself to Oka. She was regularly bullied by nearly everyone at school. And, from what Shin'd heard, her parents weren't much better. "I prefer sitting here, on the fountain. It's so quiet here. It's good to come here beetween classes. Inside of the school, it's noisy and crowded. Here, I always have some time to think. I love the peaceful silence and the cherry trees".

Even if Taro was really lame and average, he couldn't blame Oka for spending time with him. Apparently, nobody in the club could help her...

"Well..." Oka cleared her throat, preparing to say something. But before she could continue, the bell rang, meaning the end of lunchtime. Shin decided to stay by the door until they let the plaza. A moment after that, he heard footsteps.

"Thanks for the talk. It was very nice of you, spending lunchtime with me" Oka said. Taro chuckled quietly.

"You don't have anything to thank me for. Spending lunchtime with you is a pleasure. I'd love to do it again sometime" he heard Taro's response, but before he could think more about how stupid was Taro Yamada, he remembered that he had left the rest of the Occult Club's members alone for most of the lunchtime. _'Shit!'_ He failed in his responsibilities just to spy on Oka. He felt like the worst person ever. Oka was at least DOING something, while he just acted like a complete creep. His life was just a series of pathetic failures. Oh well, he already got used to it.

Anyway, Oka was awfully silent for quite some time now. Taro Yamada just complimented her. _'She must be pretty shocked, considering the fact that no-one ever tells her anything nice'_ he noted.

"Oh... thanks..." she said, barely audible.

"I almost forgot" Shin couldn't really hear anything for a few seconds. "Here's my phone number. That way we can talk anytime you want"

Another minute of silence from Oka. Of course, Shin never gained Oka's phone number.

"Okay, we should be heading ot class now" Taro said and Shin heard footsteps yet again. He realized he should be going to his own classroom, so he chose the nearest staircase and rushed to the third floor, over a minute late.


	3. The unwanted tension

**Monday, after school**

Taro's POV

Taro couldn't focus on what the teacher was talking about. He was even more distracted than before lunchtime. He looked at Oka. After all, she was the most distracting person he's ever met. In the good way, of course. She didn't notice he was staring at her, so he decided to watch her for a bit longer. Her dark hair was covering her right eye, there were also dark circles under her eyes. She wasn't getting enough sleep, that was for sure.

Taro realized that when he looked closely at her, Oka was actually beautyful. It was just difficult to notice because of her attitude. The fact that none of the students really paid much attention to her wasn't extacly helping. At that moment he noticed that she was actually even prettier than Kokona was. Or did he think so because he was desperate...? No. He wasn't that desperate. There must have been something about her that just drove him insane every time he saw her. He couldn't quite name it, but he knew she was special to him in some way. Unlike Kokona, whom he didn't really develop a romantic relationship with, despite everyone thinking otherwise.

He was surprised when Oka approached him this morning. She was said to have no interest in anything that is not paranormal, and yet she noticed that he was walking alone. Some of the students passed him before her, and didn't even bother to talk to him. But she was the one to talk first, so maybe she wasn't as weird as everyone thought her to be. Or maybe... she felt something for him? It was way too early to even consider this, so he just decided to forget about it.

He remembered their conversation during lunchtime. Taro never realized Oka felt so bad because of the other students making fun of her and gossiping about her, or just completely ignoring her. Nobody should be treated like that. He'd never been bullied, but he could imagine how horrible it is for her. Theu were kind of similar, Oka and himself. Both of them were loners who didn't really enjoy the company of other people. Maybe they could help eachother. Besides, Oka was a nice person and Taro really liked talking to her. They should definetely hang out again, the sooner the better.

Shin's POV

The bell rang, meaning the end of the schoolday. Shin quickly packed his things and left the classroom. He glanced at Oka's classroom. He waited for a few seconds before Oka came out, but she was immidiately approached by Taro Yamada. He watched from the other end of the corridor as they chatted outside of the classroom. Eventually, he got bored and a bit frustrated, so he picked the nearest staircase and to the Occult Club's room.

Oka's POV

"So..." Taro started "Do you have anything to do now, or can we walk home together?"

Oka looked at her feet. She couldn't, even if she really wanted to. She looked back at him.

"I-I would love to, but... you see... I.. have a club meeting soon, so I'm staying at school until... s-six P.M. I'm sorry"

Taro looked slightly disappointed, but he nodded. She hated the fact that she had to do this to him. She actually wanted to come with him, to escape from her daily routine and the people she was afraid to meet right now.

"I'll see you tomorrow, Oka" he said, waving his hand as he walked away.

Oka sighed. She was all alone now. All of a sudden, she felt so scared and vulnerable when he left. She had to take care of the club meeting. She turned around and started walking towards a staircase, when she noticed Shin walking down the staris. She hesitated for a moment before speeding up to meet him. If they had to have an unpleasant talk about her ditching the club meeting on lunchtime, she'd prefer to talk to him outside of the Occult Club.

Shin heard footsteps behind him on the stairs. He was always alert. Maybe it was because of his serious trust issues.. It was Oka, he could tell. He turned around.

As she approached Shin, he quickly turned around to face her. Oka somehow lost her balance, partially because of Shin's sudden reaction, and partially due to her being awfully tired all day. Why did she have to be so clumsy? She would have surely fallen down the stairs if Shin wasn't so quick. As she was starting to fall, he caught both of her wrists in his hands.

He saw Oka's eyes widen as she lost balance and started falling. It all happened so quickly, he caught her before she could get hurt. He looked at Oka and realized they were so close, their noses were almost touching. He could feel her breath on his skin. She's never been this close to him. Oka looked at him and they stared at eachother in silence. Shin felt her heartbeat quicken on her wrist. His own heart was pounding in his chest. It was telling him to do something, anything. But he wasn't sure if he wanted to roughly push her away, or if he wanted her to be even closer. So he didn't move and kept staring into her wide-open, shocked eyes and feeling her heartbeat under his fingers.

Oka was relieved Shin caught her before she could fall, but being so close to him made her feel uncomfortable, and she had no idea why. Her heart skipped a beat when she looked at him. Despite their difference in height, for the first time Oka could meet his eyes. It was weird, seeing his face from such a small distance. Then she realized he was looking at her this whole time.

She didn't want this. She barely knew him and her relationship with Taro just made this situation even worse for her. Yes. Taro was the main reason she felt so uneasy. It wasn't like she was bound to him in any way, but she just felt like she shouldn't like anybody else because of her feelings for him. And this tension beetween her and Shin wasn't helping.

They were staring at eachother, unable to move, while she kept thinking about the situation they were in. She tried to figure out what was going through his head right now, but she gave up, seeing that his expression was unreadable. But the way he was looking at her made her shiver slightly. He must have felt it, because he stepped away from her and let go of her wrists.

"Are you alright?" he asked, lowering his voice to make sure only Oka heard him.

She looked at him again as she tried to calm down after what just happened.

"I'm fine" she just answered shortly, wanting to end this conversation as fast as possible. She hesitated for a moment before adding "Thank you"

He looked at her and a barely visible smile appeared on his face. That was the second time Oka has seen him smile, so it was an extremely rare sight. _No._ She had to stop it.

"We should be heading to the Occult Club" he reminded her. After a moment of silence as they were walking down the stairs, he added coldly "After all... you wouldn't want to miss another club meeting, would you?"

Oka froze. She stared at him with terror. Of course he noticed her absense during lunchtime. Then she remembered she saw him near the plaza, and he must have heard her conversation with Taro before that. _"Oh, god"_ this wasn't good. _No, no no..._.. he knew about her and Taro. He knew why she didn't come to the Occult Club on lunchtime. She was so embarassed right now. She had no excuse for what she did. For a brief moment she felt horrible. But... seeing Taro was worth it. It would always be worth it, no matter who knew about it. And she had to survive the consequences.

She avoided eye contact until they reached the first floor. She pushed the door open and Shin came in right after her. The room was darked than usual, and nobody else was inside. Oka took a box of matches out of her bag and started to light the candles in the middle of the room. Soon, the room was ready for the club meeting.

Since none of the club's members came yet, Oka sat in Supana Churu's chair and strted reading a book.

She couldn't really focus on the book. Her mind kept coming back to that moment on the stairs. When he caught her he looked at her with genuine concern, afraid something might'd happened to her. Then they both stared at eachother, both equally shocked. Oka had no idea how Shin felt about the entire situation, and she wasn't sure if she wanted to know. However, it didn't matter now. She had Taro. She remembered their conversation on lunchtime. He was so nice and he listened to her like no-one ever did. She felt relieved that she was finally able to tell someone about her problems. And Taro seemed to have understood her problems. Taro was easy to get along with, while Shin was a complete mystery to her. The weirdest thing about him was the way his attitude kept changing, making him not only very unpredictable, but also extremely hard to spend time with. She never knew what was he going to say, or how was he going to act. She hated the way he was able to change from nice to mean in a matter of seconds. Sometimes she looked at him and saw only his cold, emotionless eyes. She always assumed that was his true nature, but... maybe it wasn't. Maybe, just maybe, today she saw what he's really like. She would never forget the way he looked at her just before they separated on the stairs.

She signed as Kokoma Justu entered the room and took a seat on the opposite side of the room. She had to focus on the club meeting, and after she'd leave school, on Taro. Her life got a lot more complicated throughout this one day.

Shin's POV

It was 6 PM already so the Occult Club's members left the school. Oka and Shin were, as usual, the last ones to leave. After they left schoolgrounds, they quickly glanced at eachother before going their separate ways.

He always walked alone. Eventually, he grew to like the silence and the loneliness. As he walked, he kept rethinking what happened on the stairs a few hours ago. _When he caught Oka, her face mere centimeteres away from his. They stared at eachother for a couple of seconds, and he couldn't tear his eyes away from her. Then, she felt her shiver slightly. He realized she was feeling very uncomfortable in this situation, and he didn't blame her, so he let go of her, as hard as it was for him, and stepped away._

He then asked her if she was alright, because that was the most normal and least creepy thing to do. As they walked down the stairs, he remembered how Oka betrayed the Occult Club to spend lunchtime with Taro Yamada. He had to remind her that she wasn't above consequences. She wouldn't push the Occult Club's members around because she wanted to do something else. She couldn't have that much control over them and over him. What he did was right, but he had to tell himself that over and over again, because he didn't really believe that. When he saw the way she reacted to his words, he immidiately regretted what he'd done. She was happy for this one moment, before she became depressed and insecure again. Taro was the one who helped her. He was just a horrible person who couldn't let her be happy. What was he going to do about it? It wasn't like he could somehow take it back. While he was conflicted about his actions when he saw her face, he felt even worse when he remembered how her skin felt under his fingers, and how her heartbeat quickened when they were so close... What was happening to him?! Suddenly, all he could think about was her, and it started the day he saw her with a guy he didn't even know. Maybe he was just being possessive. After all, she was the closest one to being his friend and maybe he just didn't want her to be friends with anyone except himself. He had no idea what was he feeling for her, but one thing was for sure – he couldn't bear the thought of seeing her with Taro Yamada. Or with anyone else. And he had to act.


	4. Deal

**Monday, evening**

Shin's POV

It was already completely dark outside when Shin was sitting in his bedroom and reading an old diary he'd found in his ancenstors' mansion. The old house was about to be sold, over a century after the previous ones had passed away, and the diary was hidden on the dusty attic where nobody would look for it. Shin was sure that was what it's owner intended when he hid it there. The forst few entries were quite boring to read, but as he kept reading, he discovered more and more clues hinting at what might'd happened to his ancestors. The author of the diary Shin was reading had written about unexplainable events happening in the house. He just finished reading one of the last entries that described an incident that resulted in the author's daughter being severly wounded. The owner of the diary wrote that he remembered what happened, but had absolutely no control over what he was doing. He watched, unable to do anythinanything, as he stabbed his own daughter nine times. His wife saw what was happening and managed to knock him out. Is she hadn't come, the author's daughter would'd been dead for sure. His ancestors had no idea what was happening, but to Shin, it was clear what happened. The owner of the house was possesed by a demon. There were two explainations for this: the house could'd been cursed in some way, or... his family had been. It was exciting, reading such an interesting diary, but, on the other hand, the possibility of his family being cursed was the most terrifying idea that'd ever come to his mind. He didn't even want to think about what could happen if he was ever possesed in a similiar way...

Before he could continue reading, he heard his phone vibrate, so he quickly got up and turned it on to see who was texting him. He had a new massage... from an unknown number. Mostly out of curiosity, he decided to check it out.

 _'Hey'_ that was all the text was. It couldn't be a mistake, the person who texted him was clearly waiting for him to answer. So he did.

 _'Who are you and what do you want?'_ he asked. It sounded a bit harsh, but he considered it appropiate.

 _'I'm the person nicknamed_ 'Info-chan' _You've probably heard about me already'_

 _'Info-chan'?_ The infamous student who sold pantyshots to some boys at school and was rumored to know about absolutely everything that was going on at the school? It was surely her. But why was she texting him...? Was he somehow bothering her, or did she think he was a potential client? Before he could think more about it, he saw her next message.

 _'I want to offer you my help'_

Well, at least she was honest and just told him what was she up to. But... help? From Info-chan? How could she help him? And.. how much did she know about him?

 _'Help? With what? I don't need help from someone like you'_ he just answered. He didn't want to get involved with her. He'd already heard some pretty nasty rumors about her. He might'd been a freak and a stalker, but he still considered Info-chan a lot worse. He waited a few moments before Info-chan's response came.

 _'You need me. And you know it. You just don't want to admit it'_ He felt genuinely scared when he read her text. She knew everything. And she wasn't afraid to talk about it, unlike him. He wasn't actually sure if she knew about what happened earlier that day, but she seemed very confident. He decided to wait for her next text, instead of trying to argue with her. _'I can help you get rid of Taro Yamada'_

Shin was staring at the text for the longest time, reading it over and over again. How could she possibly know about something he wasn't quite sure of himself? Was 'getting rid of Taro Yamada' what he really wanted? Sure, he didn't like him, nor trust him at all, but he didn't want him dead. Did Taro Yamada deserve to suffer for simply befriending Oka? He didn't know if he wanted Info-chan's help for now, so he decided to gather information and think more about the subject once he knows more.

 _'And what makes you think I would want to_ "get rid" _of him?_ he replied. If she really knew what was going on, she might as well give him a proof. As soon as he saw her reply, he immidiately regretted asking her that.

 _'I saw you stalking him and Oka Ruto today. Before that, you've overheard their conversation near the lockers. And don't think I've missed that action on the stairs after classes ended. It helped me piece the whole thing together. It wasn't as hard to figure you out as you'd think'_

So it was true. She saw everything. It made him think... has anyone else seen him or known about the situation with Oka, Taro and him? Info-chan was even smarter than he thought. He was sure nobody would suspect anything, but maybe he wasn't as careful as he thought.

So she wanted to help him. She had a lot of things he did not - information about everyone and everything at school and a lot of important connections. That might'd been useful for him and would save him a lot of time and trouble. But he still had one question... why did she want to help him?

 _'I'm assuming you want something in return for your help'_ What could she want from him?

 _'I've found myself intruiged in your little_ "triangle" _'_ How dare she call it that? She was lucky she wasn't speaking to him in person. _'Besides, siding with you and not with Taro might be... beneficial for me'_

Why was it beneficial to her? He didn't understand her logic. What could make getting involved beneficial for her? Maybe... she was doing it for another one of her clients. Someone who would do a lot for her in exchange for her helping Shin. But who could benefit from Oka... choosing him over Taro?

The important thing was that Info-chan didn't want anything in return. There was only one thing left before he'd agree to work with her.

 _'How extacly would our alliance work if I decided to accept your help?'_

The reply came quickly again.

 _'I'm glad you're asking. If you accept my help, I will inform you about anything that might interest you about Oka Ruto and Taro Yamada's relationship. I'll text you what they were talking about, and if something else worth knowing happened beetween them, I'll let you know what, where and when. If something particularly interesting happens, I'll share video footage of it with you. Sounds good?'_

The deal seemed pretty safe, considering the fact that he didn't need to do anything for Info-chan. How could she have video footage of everything that was happening at school? Did she have access to some sort of security cameras scattered throughout the entirety of the schoolgrounds? No matter how weird or creepy Info-chan was, he needed an ally. And he needed information.

 _'Very good'_ He replied shortly.

 _'It's a deal, then'_ Info-chan texted back. _'I'll contact you once something interesting happens'_

He'd just made a deal with Info-chan. He was one of her clients now. He took a deep breath. What is done is done, and even if he ever regretted accepting Info-chan's help, there was no going back. Then he thought about Oka. What would she think if she learned about his deal with Info-chan...?

Oka's POV 

Oka could finally rest. It was a crazy day, and, worst of all, it never seemed to end. She laid on her bed, looking at the celling and thinking about today's events.

Taro was so nice to her. he didn't judge her, nor push her away, like most of the other students. The mere thought of him made her heart skip a beat. She was starting to fall for him. Or.. had she already...? She knew she couldn't call it love just yet, she still wasn't sure about her feelings towards hi. Either way, she was never this excited to go to school the next day. She had no idea what would happen tomorrow, or how their relationship was going to develop, but she really didn't want to ruin what she'd already accomplished. She didn't want to lose him. She couldn't afford to do something stupid or something that would scare him off. She just couldn't.

She sighed and closed her eyes to sleep.


	5. Just another day

**Tuesday, before school**

Oka's POV

It was Tuesday and Oka was thrilled, to say the least, to go to school. As she walked to school, she began to wonder how should she act around Taro. She really didn't want to scare him off, like she did to most people. But... somehow, she knew he would accept her, and she just had to be herself.

She told herself that whatever she would do, she wouldn't regret it and would be happy with the outcome. How did she know that? She just did. She couldn't explain it. She had those... feelings since she was a little kid. She had dreams that came true the next day. Next to nothing could surprise her, or so she thought. She'd seen things most people would consider legends and fairy tales.

But with Taro, it was completely different. She was new to all of this. Everything was surprising, she had no idea what was even happening to her. She felt like a light petal, thrown in the different directions by fate itself. Like a pink petal of the lonely cherry tree behind the school.

Oka remembered her thoughts from yesterday, when she spoke to Taro for the first time. She wanted to find out if she loved him or not. Now, she considered this question unsignificant. She'd understood that it wasn't important to know what she felt towards him. She just wanted to spend time with him, and escape from the dark and depressing reality. She didn't have to decide if she wanted it to be just friendship or something more just yet. They had lots of time. And it was great, realizing that she didn't have to make life-changing choices yet. She felt like she had some kind of freedom. This word reminded her of what Taro said to her yesterday. 'Freedom'... Taro never joined any of the clubs, never had any closer frineds... He was truly free. He didn't have to do something just because other people felt like he had to. It made Oka wonder... was she free? No. She knew she wasn't. She was bound to the Occult Club and everyone in it. When people looked at her, they saw her club. She did what they did, and rarely talked to anyone except for them. That was until yesterday. She'd just met Taro and he'd already changed her life. He made her see what she was missing her entire life. She realized that she didn't have to do anything. She chose this life, because she didn't know anything else. The real question was now... was the Occult Club just a chain, preventing her from achieving what she reall wanted – change?

She had to rethink her current situation. But leaving the club meant either disbanding it completely, or... having to have a long and a very unpleasant conversation with Shin, which wasn't extacly a good idea. She just felt like she wasn't prepared to spend more time with him than what was nessecary. She just knew that if he looked at her with his cold, piercing eyes, she wouldn't be able to lie, or tell him that she wanted to leave the club. She was hopeless. Pathetic and alone. So alone without Taro. He cared about her, she knew it. He had to, why would he want to spend so much time with her if he didn't?

Despite her uneasiness, Oka came into the school full of optimism. She took a deep breath as she opened her locker to change her shoes.

Taro's POV

Taro sat in the classroom around ten minutes before class began. He took his books out of his bag and put them on his desk. He laid his notebook and the book, and his pencil case right next to them. That's how he always put them. He liked being organized. He smiled as he watched the other students come in. He was usually the first one to come to class, and today was no different.

Kuu Dere was the second one to come in. She looked at him, expressionless, and took her seat quietly. Budo Masuta, the leader of the Martial Arts club, walked in next. Taro didn't usually talk to him, but he seemed alright. The next one was Sakyu Basu, the purple haired-girl who always spent time with her younger sister, Inkyu. He once heard them complaining about Oka. They called her 'creepy' and 'disgusting'. Taro didn't know what did she do to them, but clearly she wasn't liked by most of the students. She didn't deserve such treatment. Now that Taro knew about how she felt, he paid more attention to the other girls. The Basu sisters weren't quite friendly towards the other students. That, however, didn't stop some of the boys at school from taking particular interest in the older sister. Taro wasn't one of them. Sakyu was attractive, but he knew she wasn't a great person.

The next on who came to the classroom was Mai Waifu, who was very recognizable due to her knee-length pink hair and her unnatural multicolored eyes. She was a loner, but people who knew her better described her as ''kawaii'', ''moe'' or ''deredere''. She was always spacing out, and nobody really knew what was she doing the whole time. As she walked into the classroom, she slowly took her seat and removed her headphones. She then stared at her phone with an unreadable expression for a few seconds, before cautiosly putting it into her bag and putting her books on her desk.

Riku Soma came through the doors right after Mai, but he seemed distracted, just like yesterday. Something was bothering him and Taro didn't know what. Maybe it was because of Kokona's sudden disappearance. They seemed to be friends. But maybe it was something more...?

A few moments later, Pippi Osu and Ryuto Ippongo came through the door. They didn't talk to eachother and instead took their seats and started putting their books and notebooks on their desks. Right before Taro decided to look elsewhere, he noticed Pippi glance nervously at Ryuto before quickly turning her head down before anybody else noticed it. There was something going on beetween them. Even if they didn't talk much, they were spending all the time together in the computer lab, and Taro noticed them exchanging some weird looks sometimes. It seemed like the whole school already knew about them, but they weren't realizing it. He sighed as he watched them. Was it the same with him and Oka? They were close, but they'd just met, and they were just friends, right? Frinedship or not, it didn't change the fact that he wanted to spend every moment of his free time with her. He was depressed, when she said she had other plans for yesterday's afternoon. _When she turned around and walked away, he felt empty. Like all that was good in his life left him with her. He heded to the nearest staircase and walked to the first floor, feeling completely_ _indifferent. He changed his shoes and slowly walked outside, thinking only about her. When he left the school, he felt the fresh air on his face. But it wasn't as pleasant as usual. He just wanted Oka to walk next to him. He wanted to talk to her, look at her, listen to her... He started missing her a few moments after they seperated. Was it still just friendship?_

He got lost in his thoughts, but when he saw Oka come into the classroom, he focused again on the reality. They smiled to eachother and she took a seat in front of him. She was looking way better than yesterday. The dark rings under her eyes were almost gone, and her hair was way less messy than yesterday. He also noticed that this time, she used dark purple eyeshadow. _'Looks like she had more time than yesterday'_ , he thought.

He didn't want to disturb anyone, so he pulled out his cellphone and texted Oka:

 _'Can we meet on lunchtime, like yesterday?'_

Oka quickly turned her phone on and answered him:

 _'I would love to'_

Taro smiled and looked at her. He couldn't wait until lunchtime.

 **After classes, 1:30**

Oka's POV

Oka came back to her classroom after spending the whole lunchtime with Taro. She'd learned a lot about him – she felt like she was starting to understand him better. And with every new thing she'd learned about him, the more similiar they seemed. They talked about a lot of things – other students, former schools, family, teachers. Taro also told her a bit about Osana Najimi – his childhood friend who was expelled two weeks ago. He had no idea she was that kind of person. He told her that despite everything bad that she did – he still missed her. Apparently she'd moved out of the town and Taro never saw her again after she was expelled. He really caredabout Osana, despite her being so mean to him all the time. Oka couldn't understand his selflessness. She'd never had a friend like Osana, so she had no idea how would she act in a situation like this.

Than there was Kokona Haruka – she'd heard that Taro and her were pretty close, but she'd decided to avoid the most likely sensitive topic. Now, with Kokona gone, Taro didn't have anybody. Except for her. And she only had him, too. It almost seemed like fate, trying to bind them together.

The school bell had once again interrupted her thoughts. She took her bag and left the classroom. Taro got out right after her and they walked to the plaza together. Today, she was planning to lead the club activities, so she told Taro that she could only talk to him until 5 PM.

 _Once lunchtime began, she rushed to the Occult Club's room before anyone could get there. She had a piece of paper and a pen with her. She opened one of the doorsand came in. She placed the paper on the table and started to write:_

' I won't be able to come to the club meeting during lunchtime and until 5 PM - Oka'

 _She left the note on the table and quickly left the clubroom. She was hoping someone would find her note._

Taro and her were talking for a long time, and she realized she kept staring at him while he wasn't looking. She spaced out for a moment. She knew she was staring again, but she couldn't stop herself. She couldn't hear what was Taro talking about, she was too focus on the way he occasionaly raised his hand to move his hair away from his eyes.

''Hey'' she heard him say. She jumped and blinked quickly. ''You said you have to leave at 5 PM. It's ten past five already"

She looked at him for a few seconds before she realized what did he just say.

''Oh! Thanks." she muttered and quickly picked up her bag. She waved at Taro, he smiled, and she pushed the door open. _'Welcome back to reality'_ she thought to herself as she took a deep breath before coming into the Occult Club. Everyone was inside by now and she slowly walked to the center of the room to her usual spot. Before she stopped, however, she noticed that there was something more written on her note. She hesitantly walked to the table to read the note. She immidiately recognized Shin's handwriting. He actually wrote a response to her previous note.

 _'I managed to figure that out. Thanks for caring enough to leave a note, though – Shin'_

How did he know that she was going to spend the whole day with Taro? Was it that obvious? Either way, he surely knew about how she spent lunchtime. She turned her head to look at him and he immidiately looked back. His face didn't show any sign of emotion, and his eyes were cold in the way that made her shiver slightly. So it was one of these days. It didn't matter, she told herself. She could survive his mood swings. It was only an hour. Realizing that it was the time to start the club activity, she closed the doors and started the summoning ritual, together with the other club members.

 **After school, 6 PM**

Oka's POV

Once again, Oka left the school at 6 PM, together with the other members of her club. Kokuma gave her a weird look, but didn't comment on the fact that she was late for the club meeting. She didn't even look at Shin this timeas they all seperated at the school gate. She went home, alone, as always.


	6. I'm scared

**Wednesday, night**

Oka's POV

All she could see was darkness. She took a step forward and felt the hard ground under her feet. She was inside of her school, she knew it. Suddenly, she saw everything around her clearly. It was the hallway on the first floor. She took a deep breath before slowly turning her head to the right, knowing perfecty well what she was standing next to. She was looking at the door of the Occult Club.

Suudenly, all she could think was: 'RUN!''. She turned, overtaken by panic, and ran as fast as she could. She stopped. She couldn't move. She felt a cold touch on her arm. She felt herself being pulled through the corridor by an unknown force. She wanted to break free, to run, but she couldn't. She was a few centimeters above the ground, and the invisible hand was dragging her even closer to the clubroom. She started screaming. She could barely hear her voice over the blood rushing in her ears. She kept screaming, until she couldn't feel her throat. There was nobody that could hear her or help her. Her resistance was pointless. She gave up. She closed her eyes and waited for the end to come. When she did, she felt her limp body drop to the floor in a pool of warm blood. Her blood.

Before the nightmare ended, she heard a distant voice that sounded oddly familiar.

 _''How could you leave me...?"_

Oka's eyes snapped open and she sat up on her bed. She was breathing loudly and her vision was blurry. She closed her eyes for a few seconds and tried to ease her breath. She'd never had anightmare lke this one. Her whole body was shaking. She looked through the window in her room. It was still quite dark outside, but she could see everything on the street clearly. She reached out for her phone to check what time was it. It was 3:55 A.M. Too early to get up, and too late to get back to sleep. She slowly fell back onto her bed and decided to think about the nightare she'd just had. She wasn't sure if it was just a dream, or a vision, a warning. She remembered the last time she'd ever had a real vision. It was a few years ago.

It was really a vision, what did she have to do to prevent it from coming true? There was a possibility that she could DIE during the next few days, and nobody would even know why or how. The voice said: ''How could you leave me?" That voice... she knew it's ower was very important for some reason, but when she tried to recall the face of that person, she couldn't find anything. She had no idea who he was. Who did she betray then? And how? What did she have to do to fix it? She could try finding that person, but she knew it was nearly impossible. So that nightmare might come true. Soon. She took a deep breath and stared at the celling. Why did she had to deal with those things? Why did she have to protect her life, when she was only seventeen? She had to analize this nightmare. The hands were dragging her to the Occult Club, and she was standing next to it at the begging. She was trying to run away from it. She decided she had to avoid that area for the next few days, until she'd figure out what extacly does she need to do, or until the danger is gone. That was a good start. But she still needed an excuse for ditching the next few club meetings. Maybe she could ask Taro about it. He would surely know a way to spend time far away from the Occult Club.

Oka opened her eyes and saw her room in the morning. She must'd fallen asleep. She got up and started to dress up. As she was putting on her bra, she felt sudden pain in her shoulder. She looked at it and barely kept herself from gasping. There was a black bruise in the place where the hand in her nightmare was touching her. And worst of all, it was shaped like a very skinny hand with long fingers. The mark covered her whole shoulder and some of her upper back. She quickly covered it with her school uniform and finished dressing up. She was marked. That mark on her shoulder was just a warning, and her vision was real. She swallowed in fear. She needed Taro. She was shocked, and terrified, and she needed someone to protect her. She was actually glad that she had a reason to spent the whole day with him.

When she arrived at school, she didn't have much time before classes'd begin. She rushed to her classroom and took her seat right before the teacher came in. She looked at Taro, who looked back at her with worry in his eyes. She must had been looking exhausted and paranoid right now. To be honest, she was really tired. She was awake for more than an hour at night, and she went to sleep late, so she hadn't gotten much sleep. Plus, she was still schocked and terrified because of her vision.

The first classes had passed quickly and it was lunchtime soon.

Taro's POV

They left the classroom together, as usual, but Oka seemed bothered by something. He didn't want her to be depressed, so he decided to ask her about it.

''Is something wrong?" he simply asked her. She looked at him like she didn't quite get what he just said. She must'd been deep in thought.

''Can we... talk somewhere private?" she asked him and he wasn't sure why would she want such a thing. ''Somewhere where... nobody could hear us?" was she afraid of someone spying on them? Weird...

''Sure" he answered. If she had something important to tell him, he didn't want to be in her way. Whatever it was that she wanted, he respected her wish. He started leading her to a less crowded area of the school.

Shin's POV

Shin was walking down the stairs to the Occult Club, when he'd received a new text, most likely from Info-chan. He stopped and took out his phone to see a new text.

 _'I think you should watch this'_ she just wrote. Below the massage was a video, showing the area outside of Oka's classroom. The bell rang, and the students came outside. He saw Oka and Taro walking together. Taro asked Oka if something was wrong. Oka answered him: ''Can we talk somewhere private...? Somewhere where nobody could hear us"? The video ended with the two of them walking down the stairs together.

Shin was completely speechless for a moment after hearing what Oka just said. Did she know about him spying on them? And, more importantly, what did she want to tell Taro? Still confused, he texted Info-chan:

 _'Will you be able to hear their conversation'_

Her reply came quickly, as always.

 _'Don't you remember that I can see and hear everything in this school?'_

 _'I see them, I see you, I see the teachers, everything. Nothing can be hidden from me here. And, to answer your question, yes, and I will text you once they finish talking'_

He sighed quietly and headed to the Occult Club.

Oka's POV

She was where would Taro lead her. She followed him downstairs, thankful that they didn't pass through the hallway next to the Occult Club. Taro led her outside, and she stopped him there. ''I... I think that's enough" she said to him. They were standing at the back of the school.

"So what did you want to talk about?" he asked, and looked at her. Oka looked down and cupped her hands nervously. How was she going to tell him this? She had to start from the begging and not mention her nightmare. He wouldn't believe her.

"I... when I founded the Occult Club, I was really happy. I felt like finally, I could belong somewhere. And be with the people that understand me"

She glanced at Taro to see his reaction. He was looking at her in silence, so she went on:

" But now... when I met you yesterday I... I realized that that's not what I really ant and... and that it doesn't bring me any joy anymore. It's just a responsibility now. And I..."

She sobbed. She didn't mean to get so emotional, but she realized that what she just said was the truth. She was just denying it. She couldn't help the singletear that fell down her cheek.

"Previously, I could just go to the Occult Club if I felt bad because of the bullies and everything, but now..." she sobbed again.

"Now I'm not even wanted there. I don't know what do they want from me... I don't know what to do with my life... I don't know how to live at all anymore" she remained silent for the next few seconds, trying to regain control over her breathing and the tears.

"Everyone I trusted left me... now I'm all alone..." she didn't even look at Taro. She was too scared that he would laugh at her. That he would abandon her, like everyone else.

"I'm scared... I'm so scared, Taro" She gave up. She was crying now, and the sudden sobs were shaking her whole body. She was a complete wreck. Her knees suddenly weakened and she started falling to the ground, ready to fall onto the grass and cry until she didn't have any tears left. She felt Taro's arms around her waist. He stopped her from falling and helped her get up, while gently holding her.

His touch was unlike anything she'd ever felt before. It was comforting, and makng her fell safe, but at the same time it sent shivers down her spine. She completely forgot about her nightmares, about the fear, all she could think about now was this quiet thrill of being in Taro's arms.

Taro's POV

He looked down at the girl he was holding in his arms. She was beautyful, and no girl in the school could match her innocence that was making her so unintentionally attractive. She was awfully quiet. Her eyes were open, but she wasn't looking anywhere, her vision was clouded with tears.

He bent down a little and whispered:

"It's okay. I'm here". He was hoping it would calm her down a little. It worked.

Oka's POV

She felt Taro come even closer. He whispered right above her head:

"It's okay" he said. He didn't freak out, or make fun of her. He really wanted to help her. "I'm here". She'd never heard him talk like that before. His whisoer was making this moment even more intimate.

She opened her eyes wider and hesitantly came closer to him. She laid her hands on his shoulders and placed her head on his chest, right next to his heart. She could stay like this forever. Taro wrapped her arms around her a bit tighter, protectively. She stopped crying and quietly listened to his heartbeat.

They stayed like this for what seemed like forever before finally seperating after they heard the bell ring, meaning the end of lunchtime.

Taro's POV

They walked into their classroom together and sat down on their chairs. The teacher wasn't there yet, so Taro started to think about what happened beetween him and Oka. When he embraced her, he had no idea how would she react. She was obviously shocked by their sudden contact. But she didn't stop him. No, she wanted it, too. He closed his eyes and imagined how her small hands would feel on his chest.

But it was way too early for that. He knew that even if she felt the same way about him as he felt about her, which was still just a guess, she wouldn't be ready for more phisical contact. As much as he wanted her, he had to be patient. He had to develop a closer relationship with Oka to even be able to think about what would come next without mentally calling himself a dirty pervert.

There was a long way ahead of them for sure, but somehow, someway, sometime... he knew they would overcome the obstacles. Together.


	7. The happy ones, the sad ones

**Wednesday, classtime**

Oka's POV

About five minutes before the bell would ring, the teacher suddenly stopped talking. She looked at the class.

"Third-year students in our school were always responsible for cleaning up the schoolgrounds after classes' end" She started, and everyone knew extacly what was she going to say.

"This year, it's your responsibility. You're not allowed to leave the school until everything is as it should be. Understand?"

Everybody in the class nodded their heads, even though nobody was happy about staying at school for so long after classes. Except for Oka. It was the perfect opprotunity to avoid the Occult Club for the rest of the day. And she even had a perfect excuse. Even if she wanted to show up, she coudn't. So everything was okay, and she might just be safe. For now. She just had to avoid the hallway on the first floor. Surely she could just take care of the rooftop or something.

She looked at Taro. He smiled. That meant they could also walk home together today. She sighed with relief and leaned back in her chair. Maybe she didn't have a reason to panic at all. Everything was going perfectly fine. She would safely go home, and at school, she would stay close to Taro all the time. As long as she wasn't alone, she wasn't afraid. And she knew she was an easier target when she was all by herself.

Oka's POV

It was almost 5:30 PM, when Oka was carrying an empty trash can back to the cafeteria. She just finished her work on the third floor, and her teacher said that she could go home once she puts the trash can back. The whole day was going surprisingly normal. She didn't notice anything unusual or paranormal, and she was fairly calm.

She went down the stairs and reached the second floor. Now she just had to...

"Kyaaa!" she shrieked, when she felt a strong push on her back. She tripped and fell onto the hard ground.

She knew what was happening. How could she not know? It wasn't the first time something like this happened. But who was it this time? She closed her eyes and waited. Every secind seemed like an hour. Finally, she heard footsteps. Painfully slow footsteps. She took a shaky breath. How could anyone scare her like this? She knew what would happen next. She just wanted it to be over. But it was never over so quickly.

The person behind her stopped right next to her feet and she heard a familiar, high-pitched voice.

"Don't touch her!" It was Inkyu Basu. She was about five meters away from her. Which meant that the person behind her was...

"Why?" she heard Sakyu's deep, feminine voice. She was always the one in charge. Of her younger sister, of all the boys, of Oka. She did anything she wanted to, because everybody was either too indimidated by her dominant attitude, or too shy because of her extraordinary beauty. Inkyu wasn't mean, or evil, she just wanted to spend time with her sister.

"She's creepy" Inkyu answered quickly. _"Creepy"_. That was the word most of the students used to describe her. _"Weird"_ was the second most common adjective when it came to her. Oka got used to it over time. She was still lying on the floor, too indimidated to stand up and face her bullies.

Sakyu giggled playfully. The sound itself gave her chills.

"Well..." she said, still chuckling. "I couldn't resist". The Succubus came closer to her, and Oka felt her foot brush against her leg. She shut her eyes even tighter. She had no idea what would happen next. She was paralzed with fear. What did the Basu sisters want to do to her? A few, torturous seconds have passed until she heard another voice. The voice she really needed to hear. The voice of comfort and safety. Taro's voice.

"Hey, leave her alone!" she opened her eyes and raised her head just a little bit, so she could see what was happening in front of her. Taro was standing a few metres away from her and the Basu sisters. She heard Inkyu step away from her, while Sakyu was still standing above her.

"Sakyu, there's no point..." Inkyu started, but her older sister silenced her. She stepped even closer and Oka felt her foot near her knee.

"Seriously?" Sakyu asked Taro. She wasn't nervous at all. She was always so confident, she never feared the consequences of her actions. "Since were are you siding with... HER kind?"

She couldn't see Sakyu, but she knew she was smirking. Taro looked straight at her, and then at Sakyu again.

"Since I've realized she's a lot better than you" he just said. But these few words meant so much. He was the first person to ever side with her or protect her from the bullies. He was willing to risk his own reputation to help her. And Sakyu was an influential person. If she wanted to, she could make everyone at school hate someone for no particular reason. And Taro just denied her control over everyone. That was extacly what she deserved. Someone had to show her that she couldn't just control other people like that. She wasn't sure how she would react, but what Taro just did was very bold. He insulted Sakyu. He said that she's "a lot better than her". Oka wasn't sure what he meant by that.

"Fine" Sakyu scoffed loudly, turned around and left.

Taro walked up to her and helped her get up.

"Are you okay?" he asked her. She looked at him and nodded in silence.

"Thank you" she said quietly. "I have no idea what could have happened if you didn't help me"

Taro looked away for a moment. He was not telling her about something. He was staring at something in the distance, as he responded:

"Nothing good for sure. Let's get out of here"

Oka swallowed. She couldn't even bear to think about what would happen If Taro wasn't there to help her.

She finished her duties and they walked out of the school together. It was so good to have Taro around. And she didn't even see any of the Occult Club members today. She felt... happy.

Shin's POV

After classes ended, Shin checked his phone for messages from Info-chan. She must've sent him something about what happened beetween Oka and Taro on lunchtime. He looked around and decided it would be smarter to watch the video outside, when he's sure nobody can see what he's doing. He had to be careful about his partnership with Info-chan. If any student found out about it, it would be very, very inconvienient for him.

He looked for a place where he could watch the video without anyone disturbing him. Finally, he exited the school and stopped at the back of the building. He started watching the video Info-chan sent him.

Surprisingly, the video was showing the place where he was sitting right now. Oka and Taro appeared a few seconds later. Oka touched Taro's arm and he stopped. Shin was studying their movements carefully and trying to figure out what was going through their minds. Taro turned his head to Oka and they looked at eachother for a brief moment. Oka seemed to become more and more comfortable around Taro everyday, but such physical contact was still very uncharacterisitic of her. The way they were looking at eachother the moment she touched his arm... He knew Oka had feelings for Taro, but... Taro seemed to feel the same way about her. That would be a huge problem for him. If Taro had feelings for Oka, too, he didn't stand a chance against him.

They stopped and Taro asked Oka what did she want to talk about. She cupped her hands and looked down. He knew that gesture so well. She was very anxious. She looked lke she was about to say something that she wasn't prepared to say. _'NO'_ he thought. _'Nononononononono...'._ Was she going to tell him about her feelings towards him? _'No'_ , he begged whoever was controlling all of this. It couldn't happen now. Not like this. That one moment could make everything he'd done to prevent it pointless. All of his efforts would be wasted. And as Oka and Taro would come together, he would just be eft aone. Forever.

Oka strated talking about how the Occult Club made her feel truly happy for the first time. She said this already on Monday. But Shin felt that something was different. There was bitterness in her voice, and he knew she had something more to say.

She said that she doesn't feel the same way about the club anymore, and that she only goes there because she thinks she has to. He knew about it already. She didn't want to come to the club meetings because of Taro. She realized she could spend her time somewhere else, with someone else. And she did.

She stopped talking and sobbed quietly. She was an emotinal wreck, and it was most likely because of him. She did mention her clubmates treating her badly, and she was talking about him. He caused all of this. He was the one who made her feel bad about not coming to the club meeting on Monday. He was the one she was trying to avoid ever since the begging of this week. He had his reasons for acting like he did, but Oka obviously never figured them out. He should'd been smarter. He knew how sensitive she was, why did he even try to make her feel bad?

He didn't want her to feel like she was above the consequences. That she could ignore her club to spend the whole days with Taro. It wasn't because he wanted to have complete control over what she was doing, or who was she friends with. No, the truth was way deeper and more surprising, since he'd just figured it out.

The true reason he was punishing her for every time she'd left the club was that he didn't want her to leave. Did he desperately want her to stay in the club? He knew that wasn't it, either. He didn't want her to leave him. But he was trying too hard and he ignored how fragile she was. He had only hurt her. And he could never forgive himself for that. If he told her the truth, maybe she wouldn't be crying in front of Taro and talking to him about her problems.

As Oka continued talking, her sobs became more violent and harder to control. She was shaking, and tears were running down her face. He sat down and paused the video. Her face showed desperation. She really needed Taro's help. He'd never seen her in such a state. Her face fascinated him like neverbefore. She looked like an angel who'd lost its wings. He ws satring at her for God knows how long, until he finally resumed the video. He was curious abut Taro's reaction to all of it. So far, he didn't say anything.

Oka looked up at Taro with her watery eyes and whispered: "I'm scared... I'm so scared, Taro". Those few words made something inside of him break. He closed his eyes. It was too much. Hearing Oka say this to Taro... it was all because of him. His eyes were wet, but he wasn't crying. Not yet. He had to see what would happen next. Why was he doing this? Out of curiosity? To punish himself for hurting Oka...? He didn't want to, but he just had to keep watching. He had to see more.

He saw Oka start to fall. Before she could hit the ground, though, Taro slid his arms under hers and laid his hands on her back.

Such an intimate gesture. And she didn't push him away, not did she say anything. She just stood there, still crying, frozen, locked in Taro's embrace. His hands were shaking and his vision was blurry due to the tears gathering in his eyes. But the the video wasn't over.

Oka was silent.

Taro looked at her and after a few seconds he bent down just a little bit and whispered in Oka's ear: "It's okay. I'm here" No. It wasn't okay at all. Taro's voice was taunting him. Did things have to end up the way they did?

Oka stopped crying. She quietly came closer to Taro and laid her head on his chest.

He gave up. He stopped watching. He laid his head on his knees and felt a single tear run down his face. It was all his fault. All of it. If he wasn't so insensitive, Oka wouldn't hate him. She wouldn't be afraid of the club or of him. Oka was barely capable of coming back to school after these two days. He wasn't going to keep her as part of the club anymore. If she wants to leave, he has to let her go. Even if he can't.

Oka's life was easier than his in one way – when she needed comfort, Taro was always there for her. Why didn't anyone want to help him? Nobody ever cared about him. Was life really that unfair? Maybe he just wasn't as good as Taro. He couldn't be, even if he tried to. Oka would never love him. He had to accept it and move on, but he didn't want to. He wanted to believe that there was still a glimmer f hope for him. He couldn't just give up.

The momory of seeing Oka and Taro this close was haunting him. Taro was looking at her like he wanted more... He was afraid that if anything more happened beetween them, he wouldn't survive it.

He had failed, and this was his punishment.

He kept crying as he hid his face in his hands and lost what little control over himself he had. He hurt her. He hurt the only person he'd ever cared about. Could he had done something more horrible? More unforgivable?

That was the first time he'd ever missed a club meeting.

Taro's POV

He was walking home with Oka and he was happy they'd managed to spend the whole day together. What happened during lunchtime was just insane. He still couldn't get over it. He's never become this close with any girl over such a short amount of time. He knew she felt something for him, too, but he didn't want to ask her about it now. He felt like he had to wait until she confesses to him herself. _If_ she confesses, he corrected himself.

He remembered what happened after classes' end. He finished his work earlier and was looking for Oka so they could walk home together. He found her. Just not the way he thought he would. Oka was lying on the floor, and Sakyu Basu was standing above her. Her younger sister, Inkyu, was a few metres away from them. Sakyu's foot was next to Oka's leg and terrifyingly close to the edge of her skirt.

Sakyu was seductive, but he wasn't blind. She was disgusting and selfish. And Inkyu was obeying her every command. He didn't want to have to talk to them ever again after what just happened.

Fourtunately, Oka was the extact opposite of the Basu sisters. She was shy, but selfless and kind.

After some time spent walking and talking about a lot of different things, they had to seperate and Taro stood in place for a moment, watching Oka walk away and disappear behind the nearest building. He couldn't wait until they'd see eachother tomorrow.


	8. The last breath

**Thursday, before classes**

Oka's POV

She arrived at school at around 6:40 AM. She woke up earlier, so she had a lot of time before the classes would start. She changed her shoes, and was wondering what to do until 8:30 AM.

The Occult Club was obviously not an option, she still wanted to avoid it at all costs, partially due to her vision, and partially because of the way she now felt about it. She was too scared to stalk the Basu sisters after what happened yesterday. So she had to avoid them, too. And Taro was nowhere to be found. What could she do?

She decided to walk to the third floor and study near her classroom. She threw her bag over er shoulder and headed towards the nearest staircase.

When she was on the third floor, she was suddenly struck with unbearable pain.

She couldn't stand anymore and she fell onto her knees. Her eyes were shut as she put her shaky hands on the floor for support. She bent down even lower, she felt like her mind was being torn apart. Everything was spinning, shaking, she had no idea what was happening and how long was she on the ground. Then, everything stopped. But it didn't come back to normal. No. She felt an undiscribable, yet evident change. One minute, she was sure it was just in her head, but then she felt her entire body weaken and strenthen at once with this incredible shift. It felt like her whole life, she was blind, and now she could finally see what the world was really like. No, it felt like she was bird that couldn't fly until now. Like she'd just spread the wings she was hiding her whole life. Her head was still hurting after the sudden change, but the overwhelming power she felt pulled her up from the floor.

She stood up, slowly, and opened her eyes. She SAW the change she felt previously. Everything was grey. She looked around. She saw Sakyu Basu and Inkyu Basu walking on the other end of the hallway. Or at least, she thought it was them. All she could see were their pitch black shadows. She turned her head and saw Kuu Dere walk past her. Her whole body was shining with a blindingly white light.

Oka looked down at where the plaza was. She could see two groups of white silhouettes. She could see through walls, but only people. She noticed that everyone was white, excluding the Basu sisters. Wait... when she looked closer, she saw a black figure running down a hall on the first floor. She couldn't see who it was, they were too far away. After that, she saw another dark shadow, right next to the enterence. He wondered what made these people so special...

Then it hit her. She was phisically seeing people's auras. Something she could feel instinctavely, but was never sure of, unless it was completely dark. She was wrong before. They could only be white and black. But... if there were only two colors, what did they mean? She never really thought about it, she just knew she should stay away from people with a dark aura.

She looked around again, fascinated by her new power. What did her own aura look like? She had to find out. She looked down, and... she saw only grey. Her body was the same color as the school's building. And she was partially transparent. She had no idea what an aura like this meant. She'd never encountered it, or read about it anywhere. Interesting...

Hesitantly, she took a step forward. She could walk normally, but it felt.. different. It was almost like she was floating right above the ground, or like the floor wasn't phisical at all. She walked, but she couldn't feel anything under her feet. She continued to walk through the corridor, until she saw the girl's bathroom. She stopped, looking at it with terror. It was a black void, devouring all of the light around it.

Curiosity fought with fear inside of her, but she had to know more. Slowly, she stepped inside. What she saw there was the most horrifying sight of her whole life. Oka froze in place, unable to move a single muscle.

In the middle of the room lied a deformed corpse of a dead girl. It was pale, and devoid of color. And life. Or so she thought...

The girl's head twitched violently. Was it a ghost? A demon? At first, she thought that her mind was playing tricks on her, but she quickly learned she was wrong. The ghost mover her arm, and then her legs. She stood up, slowly. She took a chaotic step forward, like she hadn't walked in ages. Then another step. She held out her hand. Her fingertips brushed against her face.

She shut her eyes. She couldn't stand looking at the girl's blank, white eyes anymore. She was barely breathing. Her heart was racing, and she just wanted it to end. Swiftly, without pain. It would be better than the nightmares she was going to have after this.

Suddenly, she felt like she was falling. She couldn't move, she couldn't breathe, and for a split second, she felt like she crashed onto something with an incredible force. Then it stopped and she opened her eyes.

She wasn't in the bathroom anymore, and the ghost was nowhere to be seen. She realized that her vision was still black and white. The nightmare wasn't over yet.

A crack echoed through the corridors. It sounded like... the floor was slowly breaking apart. She looked in the direction of the sound. The floor was damaged, but she couldn't see anything else.

A pitch black claw cut the ground open. Long, black fingers broadened the crack and a hand emerged. It was slowly coming out of the floor. It was twitching violently. And worst of all, it seemed to be made of a dense liquid of some sort. The ground was already gone where it'd appeared, devoured completely by the dripping, dark liquid.

She just stood there, unable to move. Once again, she couldn't move an inch. It felt like an irresistable force was holding her in place, taking away her free will. Her ability to run away. And this force didn't come from this world, she was sure of it.

 **Warning! Mature content:** might be disturbing for some readers

The hand moved too fast for her to see, or react in any way, until it was too late and she was thrown onto the nearest wall. The long, black fingers were on her neck, and she gasped for air, desperately. She could feel the hand's grip tighten. The took a last, shaky breath before the black fingers made it impossible for her to breathe. She could hear the blood running through her head. Her vision was blurry, and she coudn't control her eyes. She wasn't sure if she was blinking, or if she was completely losing the ability to see. Suddenly, she couldn't feel anything. The wall she was pressed against, the pain, the fact tht she wasn't breathing anymore. Then she stopped feeling the hand on her throat. Her eyes were clsing and opening without her control, and she had completely lost all control of her body.

She closed her eyes, and she was on the floor. She could barely feel the ground she'd just hit. She just heard a distant thump everywhere around her. Her head was spinning, or at least she felt like it was. Where had the hand gone? She had no idea. Seh tried to move, but her exhausted body didn't let her. She tried to recognize what she was seeing, but her brain wasn't working either. She realized she was breathing again. She took the deepest breath she could with the the amount of energy she had left, and tried to steady her heartbeat. She was laying at the floor, looking at the celling above her.

The hand flashed right before her eyes, and covered her mouth. She couldn't scream or call for help. Then she felt another two hands grab her wrists, painfully strongly. The hands pulled her arms, and started to drag her through the corridor, like she weighted nothing. She didn't have the strenth to resist. She was barely even concious. She knew extacly where this monstrocity would lead her – to the Occult Club.

As she passed more and more rooms, she was slowly becoming more and more aware of what was going to happen to her. Soon, she was going to die, and nothing could stop the spirits from getting what they wanted.

Oka heard the sound of the door opening. Soon, so soon, her life was going to end. It was almost over. She thought about Taro. At least he'd made her last days happier. She couldn't had asked for more. These moments beetween them made her stronger. They were the best thing that'd ever happened to her. She wasn't even eighteen yet. Was it just for her life to end so quickly?

Then she thought of herself. What was going to happen to her? Would she become a ghost and haunt these halls forever? She had no idea what was going to happen. Maybe it would all just stop, and she wouldn't live anymore at all.

What about her parents? Her father never cared much for her, anyway, and her mother... she was always so sad. So disappointed that her own daughter turned out the way she did. But Oka didn't blame her. She knew how difficult her mother's life was sometimes. At that moment, as she was nearing her horrible death, she forgave her for everything bad she'd ever done to her. She forgave everyone. Maybe... even Shin. And maybe, he didn't deserve it, but she forgave him too.

She felt the cold ground under her skin, and heard a hand close the door behind her. The room was still empty. She felt the hands' grip loosen a bit, and she tried to struggle, but before she could stand up, a hand caught her bu her ankle and made her fall again, this time more painfully. Every part of her body was aching, she was confused and afraid. And alone.

The second hand gripped the back of her uniform and pulled her back with an impossible force. She felt something soft below her. It was the pentagram in the centre of the room. The one they used for all their rituals. Was her death going to be a sacrifice...?

The first hand let go of her ankle, but she felt a hand grab her right arm, and a new one grab her left arm. She couldn't move. She watched as the first hand came closer to her face, and touched her cheek. She turned her head as much as she could, but the hand wasn't going away. It rose a few centimeters above her, and fell down onto her eye with the speed of light. It buried its hot, sharp claws into her skin around her left eye, and tore half of her face from her skull. She naver knew she could scream so loud.

The blood was pouring onto her other eye, and she could barely see anything over her own blood. She turned her head to the right, and saw the hand's claws on her skin. No, inside of it. Deeper, and deeper, until it reached bare bone.

The claws dug even deeper, reached the floor, and moved through her flesh towards her wrist. She didn't even have the strenth to scream anymore. She saw black, her vision was starting to fade due to the blood loss and the pain. She was trying to breath, but all she could do was gasping for air. Her flesh was being torn, her blood was everywhere aroud her, her blood was all she could see. All that was left of what once used to be her hand were charred bones soaked in this disgusting, black liquid pouring from the demonic hands. She was a living corpse, not a person anymore. She shut her eyes, not capable of watching it anymore.

She heard another hand emorge from the floor, this time on her left. She couldn't see anything without her left eye. It was gone forever, leaving a deep, black hole with warm blood filling it. She felt the hand grab her wrist, almost crushing it, and move her arm on the floor. She felt claws being dug into her left arm, she couldn't even breathe anymore, she was moaning helpelessly, subconciously trying to survive, even though she'd given up a long time ago.

She felt two hands grab her ankles. She could barely feel them, she was barely alive anymore. She didn't even try to resist as she felt her legs being spread. She felt cold air on her legs. What were the hands doing to her..? It didn't matter anymore. Struggling was futile now. She didn't care if she would die a virgin anymore or not. Nothing mattered anymore if she was going to die, no matter what she did. She didn't care what was happening to her. She didn't care what horrible things would happen to her. She didn't care if anyone saw her right now. She felt...

… free. For the first time in forever, she finally understood what it really meant. This was the freedom she'd always wanted. She didn't care if it was only for a momnet. One moment of happpiness was better than a long life without ever knowing it.

Suddenly, everything stopped. She couldn't feel pain. She couldn't feel anything anymore. Then everything went silent and she saw only endless darkness.

Freedom.


	9. The vision

**Thursday, before school**

Shin's POV

He came to school earlier than usual. He wasn't sure why. After he came inside, he immidiately headed towards the clubroom.

Shin was almost ten meters away from from the door, when he heard a muffled scream coming from the inside fo this very room. Oka. He ran as fast as he could, and pushed the door open.

He froze next to the door. This was likely the most disturbing and terrifying thing he'd ever seen. Oka was laying on the pentgram in the middle of the room. Her arms and legs were lining up perfectly with the symbol. Her head was tilted back in an unnatural manner, and her eyes were blank. Devoid of life. Her whole body was shaking. He locked both doors behind him and stepped closer. Going inside the circle around Oka right now could have severe consequences, even if whatever happened here was over, the pentagram still had a lot of power in it. But he had to do something! He came as cose to Oka as possible without disturbing the circle.

He knelt down beside her and looked at her closely. She wasn't concious. At least, her conciousness wasn't in the same dimension as her body. Her limbs her twitching violently. He noticed that her lips were parted slightly, he could hear her uneven, rapid breaths. Thank God, she was alive. Carefull not to disturb the pentagram, he touched her wrist. Her heartbeat seemed perfectly normal. Phisically, she appeared to be fine. He couldn't see any wounds or bruises on her skin. However, he had no idea what was she going through at this moment. He wished he could contact her somehow, find out what'd happened to her, or just tell her everything was going to be okay. But there was nothing he could do. Whatever was controlling her was a lot stronger than him. The only thing he could do was wait until it was all over. It was all up to the spirits now. They could kill her easily. And he wouldn't be able to do anything to stop them. He knew he didn't want anyone to know about this. For Oka's sake. He waited, and waited, but nothing was changing. Until...

Her eyes suddenly closed, and she stopped moving. He stood up and started wondering what to do. Nobody was in the hallway outside. He looked down at Oka. She looked so vulnerable. No, he couldn't leave her here. Not like this. As much as he'd want to just run away and hope someone else helps her, he couldn't. He considered his options, and finally decided what he considered the most rational thing to do in this situation – visiting the school nurse. She should be at school already. Of course, he wouldn't tell her what really happened. Even if he would, she wounldn't believe him.

There was only one problem – the nurse's office was on the other side of the first floor. And he didn't want to leave Oka while he would go talk to the nurse. He took a deep breath. He knew he would regret this, but this was the only way.

He knelt down again and slid his hand under Oka's knees, then under her back, and picked her up. He held her close to himself, like he was afraid she would disappear any moment. He was. She was so light, so perfect in every way, she might as well had been made of mist, or of light itself.

But he had no time to waste. He looked at the hallway outside the room. Thankfully, nobody was there. He came through the door, very carefully. He couldn't let anything happen to her. He started walking towards the nurse's office.

He was glad Oka was wearing high stockings and arm warmers. That way he didn't feel guilty about touching her bare skin. He knew he didn't deserve to touch her in any way, even through clothing. But he didn't have a choice. He knew she hated him for what he'd done to her this whole week, and that she would hate him even more once she'd find out what happened.

Of course, she would want Taro to save her, but he wasn't even at school yet, and someone had to help her. He wasn't sure if he hated that he was the one who found her, or if he was grateful fot it. He felt awful thinking that, but he was glad he found her unconcious. If she was awake when he'd found her, he wasn't sure how she'd react. At least, she was unconcious, so she wouldn't remember any of it. She would likely never even learn who found her. And he wanted it to stay that way.

He looked down at her face for a moment. She was still unconcious, but alive. Good. He turned the corner and could see the nurse's office already. He was really hoping she was there already. If not, he would find a way in. He couldn't leave Oka alone like this. He had to make sure she was either with someone reliable, or in a place where no unworthy eyes could see her in such a vulnerable state.

Honestly, and it hurt him to admit it, Taro was the only one who deserved to see her like this. He wanted to deserve it, too, but he knew she could never forgive him. And even if she did, he would never forgive himself for what he'd done to her.

Finally, he reached the nurse's office. It seemed that there was nobody inside. He pushed the dor open and came inside. As he expected, the nurse wasn't present yet. It was strange, considering the fact that she was always so well organized. He gently laid Oka on the nearest bed, and sat down on another one. Oka seemed alright, from what he could tell. She was breathing, but she was still very weak. He was watching her for a while before the door opened and the nurse came in.

She was different than the nurse he remembered. She was younger, had pink hair, and was wearing a tight white uniform that most likely didn't fit. She looked at him, then at Oka, then back at him. He stood up and took a step towards her.

"H-hi" the nurse started. She must'd been feeling pretty uncomfortable right now. Too bad. Oka comes first. "How can I help?"

He looked back at Oka. She was still unconcious.

"She'd just passed out" an obvious lie, but most people never even realized when was he lying. "So I brought her here. Can she stay here until she wakes up?" he wanted the nurse to just do what she was meant to do, so he could make sure Oka was safe.

"Oh" the nurse lglanced at Oka, and turned back. She walked to the other side of the room, where her desk was. She bent down, looking for something on the desk. He turned his head, pretending not to see her entire panties.

Why was this miserable, idiotic creature allowed to work in their school? He was starting to lose whatever respect he had for the adults of this world.

The nurse finally turned around. She quickly walked back to where Oka was laying. Halfway through the room, she tripped. He resisted the urge to let her collapse to the ground and roughly caught her by the back of her uniform. She gasped quietly and looked at him in surprise. He had enough of her stupidity.

He didn't let go of her uniform. Instead, he pulled her closer and looking straight into her eyes, he said:

"If you hurt her or let anyone else do it until she wakes up, you will regret it"

It sounded like a death treat, and he was aware of it. It was a death treat. And he didn't care if it was because of an accident, he didn't care how she would be hurt. If Oka was harmed today, the nurse was responsible. And he would make her suffer. He didn't care about the consequences. He wanted this nurse to be careful with Oka. He saw how clumsy she was. He was hoping she would remember his warning and not even try to go anywhere near Oka until she was concious again.

The nurse was looking at him with terror. He let go of her, and she fell to the ground face first. With that said, he left, and hoped he wouldn't have to come back here to avnenge Oka.

Oka's POV

The darkness consumed her whole mind, but nothing happened. She didn't see anything new, or surprising. Was this death? Being forever trapped in a darkness one can't escape from? It couldn't be. She tried to turn her head, move in any way, but even breathing was impossible. She wasn't a phisical being anymore. She was seperated from her body the moment she saw darkness.

But... there was something before her. A blurry image, but it was there. No, it wasn't an image. It was a memory. A memory of someone long dead.

She saw the girl's bathroom on the third floor, the same one where she'd seen a ghost. Was she going to see her death? A blurry, dark figure entered the room. It was a girl, taller than her, but she couldn't see her face. It was a black void. But Oka didn't need to see her to feel the darkness in her heart. It was overwhleming. Her hatred for everything in this world. But, this hatred... it was fueled by something deeper, something less obvious... love. How could someone so filled with hatred even be capable of love? And how could someone who loved so deeply... be so full of darkness? How could love do that to anyone? It seemed grotesque and disturbing, but the girl she was seeing right now wanted to KILL. It didn't matter who it was, she wanted to pierce somebody's skull with her knife, only for the pleasure it gave her. And all of it in the name of love. It was sick. She was sick.

Oka dug deeper into the girl's soul. She saw her gruesome fantazies about killing every living person at school. They all did something to her. They were all guilty and deserved to die. She just wanted to end them all. Until there was no one left alive except her and her Senpai. She dreamed about pools of blood covering the floors, bloodstains on the walls. _Everywhere. Red. Dark. Fresh._

 _Then she heard a scream. Someone was still alive. She wanted him dead like everyone else. She ran after him. He wouldn't escape her this time. She ran after him and finally pinned him down. She was laughing as she stuck her knife into his chest, into his face. She heard ribs break, bones fall apart, and his screams. They were the most satisfying. She stabbed him, and stabbed him, and stabbed him, until all he was was a red, immobile, corpse. Unrecognizable. One final stab and everything was over. She stood up and admired her victory. She was insane. But she loved every second of her own insanity. She loved the blood. She loved the screams. She loved the thrill of chasing her victims. She wanted to kill more._

 _But everyone was already dead._

Oka suddenly escaped the girl's mind. She realized she went too far. For a second, she had no idea who she even was or what were her own thoughts. She just wanted to hurt. She didn't want anything like this to happen again. She told herself to NEVER do that again. She got lost and could barely get out. She couldn't seperate herself from the girl. She didn't want to end up stuck in somebody else's mind.

She came back to the bathroom on the third floor. Another girl came in. She had short, red hair and blue eyes. The psuchopath hid behind a stall and watched her. She took out a knfe, and slowly, quietly made her way to where the girl stood. Oka wanted to warn the poor girl, but there was nothing he could do. It was all a vision, and it'd all already happened. And the girl about to die was the ghost she saw today.

The murderer pushed the girl's head onto the mirror before her. Before the victim could scream, Oka heard a gruesome crack. The girl's blood covered the mirror, and if she wasn't dead already, the shards of the broken glass in her head finished her. The girl dragged the body to the nearest stall and hid it there. After that, she left, like nothing happened.

Oka was schocked. Who was this girl? It was their school for sure, but she didn't recognize her victim. So it must'd been way back in the past. Maybe even in the eighties. But why was she seeing this?

The vision blurred out suddenly, and she saw the girl shrouded in darkness once again, this time on the rooftop. She pushed another girl, and the fall was fatal. Then the vision blended together with another one, and a next one. All showed the deaths of gilrs by the hands of the same murderer. She saw eleven victims so far... How was this even possible? How could a schoolgirl run be capable of commiting such crimes and running away from the police for so long? And... was she still alive? Free?

The the vision faded completely and she saw another scene. Kokona Haruka was sitting alone on a bench on the school rooftop. She remembered Kokona. She was nice, and everyone seemed to like her. But then, suddenly, there were rumors about her engaging in compensated dating. Apparently they were true. So everyone turned away from the poor girl, who was left completely alone, with no friends to support her. That's why she was sitting alone.

A girl, dark and unrecognizable, but definetely dfferent than the previous one, appeared behind Kokona. She was carrying a baseball bat. She smacked her victim in the head. Before Kokona realized what was happening, the girl already killed her. She then threw the body off the rooftop, and ran away.

Oka was shocked. If this vision was true, she ws the only one at school who knew what happened to Kokona. Except for the murderer. She recalled a black figure she saw running down a hall earlier today. It was all starting to fit together. She had to do something, but she had no idea what. The teachers wouldn't believe her if she told them about her visions.

She dismissed these thoughts for now. She didn't even know if she was ever going to wake up, so there was no point in making any plans.

She was back in the Occult Club, standing in the middle of the pentagram. She saw the twelve dead girls walk into the room through the walls. They came closer, and eventually surrounded her. She was scared. Scared of what they would do to her. Then she saw something white and shining. It was a barrier, protecting her fom the ghosts. Something happened and the light weakened, and was eventually crushed by the angry spirits. Each of them grabbed a different part of her body and they all drgged her underground, slowly, painfully. Into the ground. With the dead.

Darkness was once again surrounding her. The vision meant something important, she was sure of it. The ghosts, Kokona, the club... yes! It all made sense now. The Occult Club was important, beause it kept the vengeful spirits of dead girls from hurting the students or teachers. Every time they met there together, the barrier beetween their world and the other world was becoming stronger. Maintaining balance.

Because she'd missed so many meetings, the barrier was almost gone, and there was nothing to stop the ghosts and, even worse, demons, from coming to their world. She was so stupid before! She'd been studying the occult for years now, and she never realized what was the significance of their meetings. She never realized what was the power flowing through her veins everytime she was there. How couldshe had overlooked something like this? If she ever woke up, she had to go to the club and hope nobody would be suspicious of her.

The last thing she saw before waking up was a glimpse of a hand as black as night, reaching out to her.


	10. That nurse

**Thursday, after school**

Oka's POV

She felt something soft under her. She was laying on a bed. Oka opened her eyes. At first, everything seemed so bright, but then she recognized the room she was in. It was the nurse's office. But she didn't recognize the nurse herself. She must had been new or a substitute.

Turning her head, she saw Taro sitting next to her bed. She was okay. She couldn't believe it. She was still alive, and Taro was with her.

"What... happened?" she asked him. Her voice was still very weak. Taro looked at her and smiled.

"I didn't realize you were awake" he told her. He was thnking for a while, before he said: "Well, you passed out, and you were unconcious in the morning"

What he said made sense, but the way he said it... how long has she been unconcious?

"Wait... what time is it?" she asked him, worried how much of the schoolday she'd missed.

"It's currently 3:30 P.M." Taro sadi, and she looked at him shocked. She'd missed the entire day of school?

She tried to sit up, but her arms hurt.

"Careful" the nurse warned her. She spoke in a high-pitched, but soft voice. She came closer to help her lay down again. "You have bruises all over your arms. I don't know what happened, but if I were you, I wouldn't exhaust myself"

Bruises? Did the hands leave marks n her skin where they touched her? She had to see them oce she'd come back home. As much as she wanted to leave, she had to agree with the nurse. She was exhausted, and she shouldn't get up just yet. And the nurse seemed nice, she surely knew what ws best for her.

"I think you should stay here with me for some time" the nurse looked at Taro. "Alone"

He stood up.

"As much as I enjoyed your company, I have to take care of your friend first"

What the nurse said made her feel slightly uncomfortable. Maybe it was just her odd way of wording this sentence, but she felt like something important happened beetween these two while she was asleep.

Still, she had to get up and speak to Taro without the nurse present. She wanted to learn as much as possible about what happened to her before school. She sat up again, this time successfully, and looked at the nurse.

"I appreciate your concern" she started, not wanting to sound rude or ungrateful. She just had to go "But I really have to go. I'll be fine"

The nurse looked at her closely with concern.

"Oh- Well, if you need anything or feel bad, just come to me anytime"

The nurse really seemed like a nice person and Oka was glad she persuaded her so quickly. She didn't want to have to lie to her, or be rude. Taro helped her get up, nd they left the room after thanking the nurse. Once they were outside, Oka turned to Taro.

"Who is this nurse?" she asked him. She felt like this was the easiest one of the questions she was going to ask him, so she just started with it.

"Her name is Muja. Muja Kina. From what she'd told me, she's only here for a week. The previous nurse is out of town for the whole week, so they hired her as a substitute"

"Well that explains why I've never seen her before" Taro gave her a weird look, so she explained: "It's not like I go to the nurse often, I'm just saying I haven't seen her around"

She paused and looked at Taro for a moment. He smield when she mentioned the nurse's name. What was going on beetween them? She felt the need to ask him more about her, but she had to focus on what happened to her.

"What extacly happened to me before classes?" she finally asked him. She wa hoping he knew more than what he'd told her before.

"All I know is that you passed out in the morning and was brought to the nurse. I didn't see you in class, so I was worried"

He was worried about her when he didn't see her at shool? Once again he showed her how much he really cared about her. It warmed her heart, knowing there was someone who worried about her or miss her when she was gone.

"I asked our teacher what happened to you. She said that you're in the nurse's office and that everything is okay"

As she was learning more and more from Taro, she became certain he wasn't the one who found her and brought her to the nurse. But if it wasn't Taro, who was it? She should'd asked about it while she had the chance. But, judging by her absent-mindedness, she probably wouldn't remember their name.

"So what did you do when you found out what happened to me?" she asked, but she already knew the answer. But she had to be sure of what extacly happened.

"Obviously, I came to the nurse's office. She told me what happened to you, and since you were still unconcious, we talked for a bit until the end of lunchtime. Then after class I came to the nurse again, but you were still asleep. So I waited for you to wake up"

Taro's story seemed simple enough, but there was one part that worried her – the amount of time he'd spent with the nurse. They were together for a whole hour today, while she was laying a few meters away from them, unconcious. Was she really jelaous of the nurse? Yes. But it was a sweet, young, and extremely attractive nurse. Now that she thought of it, her jelaousy was justified. She, herself wasn't really extraordinarly attractive. She was surprised Taro didn't seem tobe bothered by it.

She stopped, and Taro did the same.

"What's the matter?" he asked her.

"I have something really important to do, so I won't be able towalk home with you today. Sorry about that" she couldn't tell him she was going to the Occult Club. After everything she'd told him yesterday, it would seem like the worst thing to do in her situation.

"Well, I can wait for you, I guess" he said. She didn't want to upset him, but she knew what she had to do, and she couldn't risk him knowing what she was about to do.

"No, don't wait for me. Just... just go" that came out a lot harsher than she wanted it to. She felt bad about making him feel like she didn't want to spend time with him. But she had to come to her club today.

"Okay" he seemed depressed. "Bye, then" then he walked away in silence, alone. She felt really bad now.

She watched as he disappeared behind the corner, then turned around to finally face her fears.

 **Lunchtime, Thursday**

Taro's POV

He knew Oka was in the nurse's office, so right after the bell rang, he came downstairs to see how she was doing. He knocked on the door, and heard an unfamiliar voice answer him.

"Come in" it was a soft, feminine voice. It beloged to someone he'd never met before, he was sure of it. He wouldn't forget the sound of this woman's voice. But when he opened the door, he saw something he would surely never forget.

In the room, sitting on a chair next to her desk, was a pink-haired girl wearing a white nurse's outfit that barely covered what it was supposed to cover. She was wearing pink stockings and white, high-heeled shoes. She had big, round, pinkish eyes. She seemed to be in her mid-twenties. When he entered the room, she was sitting with her legs crossed and leaning on her hand.

Once she saw him come in, she stood up from her chair. He closed the door behind him.

"My friend passed out earlier today. Is she still here?" he asked the nurse. She was looking at nothing in particular for a moment, seemingly lost in her own thoughts. She quickly blinked a few times and turned his head towards him. She was adorable.

"Oh? Yes, she's here. She's still unconcious"

For the first time since he entered her office, he tore his eyes away from the nurse and looked to his left. There, laying on a bed, was Oka. Unconcious, like the nurse said. He turned back to the nurse. She took a step forward, but she didn't notice an empty bottle laying on the ground. She slipped and fell right onto him, and they both collapsed to the ground, her on top of him.

 **Mature content warning:** suggestive themes

He closed his eyes when they were falling. When he opened them, he saw something he surely wouldn't expect to see today. The nurse's huge breasts were the first thing he saw. They were merely about two centimeters away from his face. She wasn't wearing a bra.

"Sorry. I didn't mean it, I swear" a person who looked like her had nothing to be sorry for in this situation. He should actually be the one thanking her right now.

"It's okay" it really was.

"Oh. I was afraid you wouldn't like it..." she most likely meant it in a completely different way than he heard it. Until now, he didn't even raise his head to look at her face once. It didn't seem to bother her, so he focused on how her breasts were rubbing against eachother as she made slight movements or breathed. He also noticed the way the top button of her uniform was barely keeping the whole outfit together. There was even a small gap beetween the two sides of the uniform. He could see the line seperating her breasts. This button looked like it could fall off any moment. Maybe with little help... one move and the nurse would be completely naked from the waist up. He just decided to enjoy watching as much as he could and avoid problems with the other teachers.

Sitll, he couldn't complain about the amount of bare skin he was seeing. Not to mention the nurse's uncovered tighs wrapped around him.

The woman seemed to finally notice his slightly unsettling silence.

"I'm Muja. Muja Kina" she introduced herself. He once again, but this time way more painfully, managed to tearhis eyes away from her her breasts and looked up at her face.

"Taro Yamada" he said, feeling the need to make at least some kind of social interaction with her, after so scandalously envading her privacy. "From class 3-2"

"Nice to meet you" the nurse smiled, and the sight was almost as pleasant to look at as her cleavage. Almost.

Then, to his both surprise and disappointment, she sat up, and got off of him. He stood up as well, and took a moment to rethink what had ust happened.

 **End of mature content**

He had no idea this nurse could have such an effect on him. And if she could, any girl could as well. He recalled hugging Oka yesterday. He wanted to touch her in all of the inappropiate ways. He didn't want it to be like this! With so many attractive girls liking him, he could lose control any moment. And it could happen anywhere, with anyone, anytime, and could have severe consequences. He should try to avoid getting into such situations from now on.

"You can stay here for some time if you want" Muja proposed, and at first he had no idea why would she offer that. Then he remembered the reason he came here in the first place. Oka. He came closer to her and looked at her. She was pale ,but other than that,s he seemes okay. It was a relief to know she was fine.

? POV

 _That. Little. Slut._ She came too close. And her Senpai didn't even try to push her away! Scandalous! She had to get rid of this perverted, lustful being, before she corrupts the purest, the mosr precious person in the whole world – Senpai. She stood up and rushed to her classroom before he could leave the room and see her spying on him.


	11. If you want to leave

**Thursday, after school**

Muja's POV

As the doors closed behind Taro and his friend, Oka, Muja was left alone once again. She'd spent most of the day either daydreaming, or reading romance novels. She really needed someone to talk to. But, after the events in the morning, she wasn't sure if she didn't prefer to be alone in this school.

 **Thursday, before classes**

After she came to school, a bit late, she stepped inside her office and saw two students inside. One of them was a girl, Oka Ruto, who was laying on one of the beds unconcious. She'd never learned the name of the boy who was sitting next to her. He stood up the moment she entered the room. He told her that his friend'd passed out and asked her to take care of her while she was asleep. She walked to her desk, in search of something that could help Oka. She still wasn't familiar with where the previous nurse kept everything. It was only her second day on the job, and the first patient. She didn't find anything useful, so she just wanted to examine the girl's potential injuries and decide what to do then. On her way, she slipped and started to fall. Suddenly, she could barely breathe. She felt a hand on the back of her uniform. She looked up to see the boy who cought her. His face had changed. A moment ago, he actually seemed nice, but right now she was scared of the deadly serious look in his eyes. He pulled her closer, a bit too close for comfort, and told her that if anything bad happened to the girl, she would regret it. She was smart enough to realize that it was a threat. And all of it for one girl who wasn't even concious to know what happened?

He let go of her and she lost her balance. The fall hurt. He didn't care about her a single bit. Only about this one girl. What was so special about her? Without a word, he left. Should she tell the rest of the faculty about what happened...? No, it wasn't that important. She stood up, and walked up to the girl.

She was afraid of doing anything to her and potentially hurting her, so she just checked if she was breathing and looked at her closely. She seemed to be fine. She didn't have any visible wounds, either.

The girl was wearing dark armwarmers and high stockings, that covered her whole arms and the majority of her legs. She decided to take off the armwarmers to check for injuries. She gasped aloud when she saw the girl's arms. They were both covered in symetrical, bruise-like black marks that started about ten centimeters above her elbows and ended on her wrist. What could have happened to her? She'd never seen something like this. Were those marks made today? Did they have anything to do with her passing out? Did the boy know about them? And, more importantly, did he have anything to do with them? These were all important questions, but ones she didn't know the answers to.

She put the armwarmers back on, and, deciding there was really nothing she could do, walked back to her desk.

 **Thursday, lunchtime**

She was alone until lunchtime. She didn't leave her office, wanting to keep an eye on the girl. She was sitting by her desk when another boy came inside. His eyes landed on her immidiately when he entered.

He asked her about the girl who passed out. It surprised her. First of all, he didn't seem to know extacly what happened to her. So that meant he didn't know the boy she'd met in the morning. Interesting. She was curious what was going on beetween those three. She politely answered his question and walked up to him.

Why did this have to happen again? She fell again. She shut her eyes, afraid of the boy's reaction. She fell onto the ground, but it wasn't painful. She felt him under her.

Muja opened her eyes. Thankfully, the boy didn't seem to be bothered by her clumsiness. She was glad some people in this school were more forgiving than others. She asked him what was him name, and introduced herself. It was quite an awkward way of meeting someone, but once again, she was glad she'd actually met somebody nice.

They got up, and chatted for a while. Taro, as that was his name, asked her about the girl's condition. He also told her her name – Oka. It was great to actually talk to someone, and not sit in her office alone all day.

He was actually quite charming.

 **Thursday, after school**

She blushed a light shade of pink, thinking about Taro. She'd never actually had a boyfriend, everyone was always so annoyed with her. She had no idea why. Maybe everyone in the world was just mean for no reason, Taro being the only exception. Or maybe he found her attractive in some way. Well, she would probably never even know because now she would probably never see him again. He didn't have a reason to come to her anymore. She let out a long sigh as she looked out of the window again, looking at the sky above the school It was such a nice day.

Oka's POV

She was slowly walking towards the Occult Club, dragging her feet even though she didn't want to.

But, although she didn't want to come back to her club, she felt slightly more confident. She felt stronger. After what happened to her this morning, facing her club didn't seem scary at all. She survived an attack of a demonic force and lived to tell about it. She didn't think anyone else in the club could say so as well.

She opened the door. Everyone was inside already. Supana raised her head from the book she was reading and looked at her. She seemed surprised at first, but then she smiled. She was happy that Oka was back..? She didn't expect a reaction like this. But it was really heartwarming, knowing she'd actually missed her. Maybe it wasn't so bad. Maybe she'd just overreacted. But then she turned her head towards Shin.

She realized he was looking at her since she'd entered the room. It made her slightly uncomfortable. But the way he was looking at her was... different. Why was it? She tried to recall anything that could'd changed his mind about her since Tuesday. She still couldn't find an explaination.

She looked forward again and continued to walk to the centre of the room. She was almost there when he stood up, suddenly. She froze momenteraly, and looked back at him. He walked to her, never breaking their eye contact. She was standing still, waiting.

He grabbed her arm more gently than she would'd expected him to, and led her outside. It seemed like he had something important to tell her. He quickly shut the door behind them and stopped in the hallway leading to the northern exit of the school. He quickly glanced to his right, and before she knew it, she had her back pressed against the wall behind her. She looked up at Shin, who was standing in front of her, around half a meter away from her. The air seemed as cold as ice.

"What the hell happened to you?" he snapped. He had his hands on the wall next to her, preventing her from escaping. Why did he ask her that? And what extacly did he want to know? She knew there was no way out of this other than trelling him the truth. She swallowed, and opened her mouth to speak.

Shin's POV

He knew he was being too aggressive, but he had to know the truth. He hated not knowing what happened to her. What if this happened again and he had no idea why, or how? She either told him the truth, or... he wasn't sure what he would do. He would have to convince her. There was no way she was getting out of school now without telling him what happened.

He watched her face as she was preparing to talk. It must had been hard for her, which wasn't surprising. Whatever happened, it definetely wasn't something she was eager to share. But he really needed her to trust him. For her own good. Maybe he could help her. She had to understand that her life was more important than her feelings.

"I... I had... a vision..." she said. She was afraid. He could hear it in her voice. He didn't want her to be afraid of him. So he just waited for her to say something more.

Oka's POV

He didn't respond, so she assumed she had to tell him more. But what would she tell him? That demonic hands attacked her and ripped her into bloody pieces? That she was shown the murders of twelve girls? That she suddenly saw everyone's auras?

The one positive thing about this situation was that Shin would most likely believe her. Maybe... she could trust him this one time. It wasn't like she had a choice. She looked at him again, and said:

"I saw... so much death..." she said, barely able to spit it out. Partially because of the memories of y the horrible deaths that she'd seen, but mostly because of who she was speaking to. She had to tell him. At least he had to know. "Murders comiited in cold blood". Her hands were twitching. "All of them in this school" She stopped, she wouldn't say anything else. She waited for Shin's response.

He froze after hearing what she'd said. It was the first time she'd seen him genuinely shocked. She wouldn't believe it at first, too. But she saw it herself, and she knew what she saw was true.

"When... did it happen?" he finally asked her. She wasn't sure when did her visions take place. The only victim she could recognize was Kokona Haruka. Poor Kokona...

"I have no idea" she said, honestly. "Most of them seemed like decades ago, but the last one..." she took a deep breath and looked around, to ensure nobody would hear what she was about to say.

"I saw Kokona Haruka's murder. Last Friday" she said, lowering her voice almost to a whisper. "And the murderer is still here"

"Did you see their face?" he asked. Any normal person would express some kind of emotion, or be more surprised. But she knew they both weren't normal. Instead, he got straight to the point.

Shin's POV

It was almost too much to learn so quickly. A student killed another student at their school, and nobody except them seemed to know about it. It there was a killer in the school with them, they had to find them and stop them as fast as they could, before they hurt anyone else. Who knows who their next target is? The thought terryfied him. What if they wanted to kill Oka? No, they had to be stopped, RIGHT. NOW.

"No, it was just... darkness. But... they seemed like a girl, maybe a little younger than us" it wasn't very precise, but it still limited the amount of suspects. Finding the killer was his top priority, of course, but he still had no idea what happened to Oka before her vision in the morning. It was the reason he approached her in the first place.

"And what extacly happened _before_ your vision?"

Oka's POV

She knew he would ask her that eventually. But she wasn't prepared to answer him at all. How should she start? She looked at him, and it was clear that she didn't want to tell him. But she had to. It was the right thing to do.

"I... I saw... a ghost... in the girl's bathroom on the third floor" she finally said. She decided to skip the portion of her vision when she saw the student's auras, and when she suddenly felt... powerfull.

"I don't know what it was, but it started walking towards me, and I couldn't move at all. Then somehow I found myself on the first floor"

She stopped. It was the hard part. The painful one.

"I-I... it..." she tried to talk, but the words wouldn't come out of her mouth. She was too afraid to tell him. She wouldn't even tell Taro about it, it was a miracle she managed to last so long. She hid her face in her hands and felt her knees weaken. She went back as much as she could, before she had her back pressed against the wall, and tried to breathe. It was too much to handle. She couldn't survive at this school. Not like this.

Shin's POV

He wasn't prepared for Oka's reaction. When she paniced, he took a step back. What should he do?

He didn't want to make her more anxious than she already was.

"If you can't tell me, you don't have to" he said. It was at least unusual for him to act like this... to back down. But the situation was unusual too, and he had no other choice.

She looked up at him, surprised by his reaction.

"It... it was.. so horrible..." she whispered softly. He wished he could help her somehow, but he couldn't. And he didn't think she told Taro about any of this.

He reminded himself once more to keep a safe distance beetween them. It wouldn't be hard for him to forget how much she wanted to stay as far away from him as possible. Yet... she came here, and she seemingly didn't have to. Unless she was hiding something from him.

Oka's POV

Silence followed her words. Her back was no longer against the wall, and she was slightly more comfortable.

Then she recalled what she was wondering about previously. She looked at Shin. He clearly knew about her passing out, but how did he learn about it? Then the horrible possibility hit her. Did he find her? Unconcious and defenceless..? Did he bring her to the nurse then? What really happened when she was asleep? She was afraid to ask him, but she was even more afraid of not knowing what happened to her.

"Were you..." she forced herself to talk. It wasn't easy at all. But she had to. She knew that once the words were out of her mouth, it would be over. She just had to spit it out. She had to. "were you the one who found me?"

Shin's POV

She knew. How did she know that? Was it just a guess? Or was she suspecting something..? He had no choice but to tell her the truth. She already hated him, so why was he so hesitant to to tell her?

Oka's POV

When she heard what she just said, she froze in fear. Shin took a step back.

At that moment, she realized what she did. She caught him off guard. She saw, even if for a moment, what he was really like, beneath all his walls, his masks. She broke his defences. He was so much like her. Afraid and insecure. He was pretending all the time, because he didn't want to be hurt like she was. She never realized why he acted like he did, but now she understood. And it was a fascinating discovery.

They were standing in silence, both too schocked to say anything. Finally, he said:

"I.. I was" it was the first time she'd ever heard him stutter. He looked away from her. She didn't know what to do, so she crossed her arms.

She forgot about the pain. She hissed.

Shin's POV

He looked at Oka again. What was wrong?

"Are you hurt?' he asked her. He didn't care if she hated him or not.

She looked back at him with slight surprise. Of course, she wasn't used to him acting like this.

"Oh, it's...I'm not sure what happened to me" she said. "My arms hurt since the vision. I don't know why"

He stepped a bit closer for the first time, and reached out to her. Before he could touch her, however, he stopped. He had no right to lay his hands on her, and she would be right to resist.

"Can I...?" he asked her, hesitantly. They were both motionless for a moment before she replied.

Oka's POV

He stopped before his hand could reach hers. She was surprised at first. He was asking her for permission only to briefly touch her skin. It seemed reasonable, after all, a few hours earlier she would try to avoid talking to him at all.

She could say no, but she didn't. Instead, she nodded in silence and raised her hands.

He grabbed the edge of one of her armwarmers. She felt the soft fabric slowly slip off. She wasn't used to having the skin of her amrs bare. It felt cold, but also more natural in a way.

She looked down at her amrs. She barely kept herself from gasping out loud.

Her whole arms were covered with black marks. Marks made of what the hands were made of. Whatever touched them hurt like the hands' touch. She hoped they would fade after sometime, but for now, she would have to live with them. As she kept staring at them, she realized that they looked a lot like claw marks.

She felt violated. She knew that they were all nothing compared to the unknown powers from the other world. They could play with her, she was merely a toy in their hands. It terrifiyed her, she always hoped that she could stop the dark magic from affecting her. But she was wrong. And she could see it clearly. The proof was covering her skin. She looked a bit closer. The marks seemed toform some sort of letters...

"T...r..." she started reading, slowly recognizing the signs. The language was ancient, but they all knew it at least a little. Shin looked at the signs alongside her, and read:

"TRAITOR" they looked at eachother, horrified. She remembered the dream she had two days before. The voice. It had to be him. The one controlling all of it. What was he, and why was she his target? She betrayed him. But how? What did she do wrong? Why did all this weight had to be put on her shoulders?

"Who did I betray?" she said, partially to herself. "What...?"

Before she could finish, pain ripped her skull apart. She whimpered softly. She recognized this... feeling. She opened her eyes. She saw a dark figure before her. She jumped back and her back hit the wall painfully. She lowered her head and closed her eyes. Her eyes were hurting now, and her heartbeat felt like it couldn't last for much longer. She was panting.

She opened her eyes once more and saw that everything was normal again. She was going crazy. If this continued, she would very soon lose her mind. Was this the point? To break her? Whatever the intention, it was working. She could already tell.

Shin was standing before her, and looking at her, shocked. He saw everything. She should really tell him the truth.

Wait... the truth... she saw everyone's auras. His, too. And it was pitch black.

"I saw... your aura" she said, finally. As he stepped closer, she lowered her voice to a haunting whisper. "It's black as night"

Shin's POV

She was lying, wasn't she? She had to be.

But he knew she was being honest. No one in the Occult Club would dare to make fun of something this serious. Why, though? What had he done to have such a dark aura..? Well, they didn't know for sure what extacly was affecting the auras, but they all knew a black aura meant nothing good. What if Oka decided he can't be a part of the club anymore? What would he do then?

In that moment they both realized they couldn't afford to have even more darkness in their club than they already did. They had no idea what kind of effects could a black aura have on a person and their surroundings, but combined with the incredible amount of power they could barely contain in the school, it had to manifest somehow. These two together were like a ticking bomb that could go off any moment, with terrible consequences.

"I should quit... " he said, and he felt that it was the right thing to do. Oka frowned.

Oka's POV

How could he even think about leaving the club? Without him, it wasn't the same club anymore. No, he couldn't leave them. Not when they had possibly their most dangerous mystery to life, and the lives of so many other students depended on them. She couldn't afford to lose any members now. She shook her head and took a single, confident step forward.

"No. You can't quit now." she said. It felt wrong, telling others what to do, but she was the leader and she knew the most about their research.

Shin took a few steps back and looked at her closely for a moment, without a word.

Shin's POV

She said he couldn't quit now. What did she mean by that? Did she have some plans for the club she didn't want to share with him?

Or maybe... she needed a replacement.

He already knew she wanted to leave the club, but was afraid of doing so. Maybe now she finally gained the courage to tell him? He didn't want to make it harder for her.

"If you want to leave the club..." he started, barely believing he actually managed to say it. "I will not stop you"

Silence followed. Oka was either considering her options, or was simply surprised.

Oka's POV

She shook her head.

"No, no that's not what I meant!" she said, slightly paniced.

How did he come to such a conclusion? _Oh._ She knew how. He always seemed to know what was she doing since Monday. She should'd asked him about it now, but the atmosphere seemed way too tense. She was too scared to make things worse beetween them to ask him.

"Well..." she said, knowing that whatever they had to say to eachother was said already. And she surely didn't want this conversation to drag on longer than it had to. "We better head inside. It's getting late"

She turned towards the Occult Club and reached out for the door handle when she heard Shin's voice from a few meters behind her.

"Oka... wait..." she turned around immidiately. They never adressed eachother by their names. It was always just 'you'. And it might had been the first time she'd ever heard him say her name.

"... yes?" she asked him, and they were looking at eachother without a word for a moment. Suddenly, he looked down and muttered:

"...Nevermind"

She knew there was more to it than that. Whatever he wanted to say was important, and she wanted to know. But she couldn't force him to tell her. One thing about Shin she'd learned over the time they knew eachother was that if he wanted to hide something, she would never learn the truth unless he told her himself. So it wasn't surprising she didn't really know that much about him. He was also incredibly stubborn. Maybe, when the time is right, he'd eventually tell her. She had a feeling she wouldn't have to wait very long. And she never doubted her 'feelings'.

She pushed the door open and greeted everyone inside. They were more confused than angry about her absense. She felt... welcome. She felt home again.

Shin's POV

Why didn't he tell her when he had a chance? He hated himself so much. But when she turned around and looked at him with those dark, purple eyes, he couldn't find the strenth to tell her. He watched as she took her place in the middle of the room. He would tell her sometime. It just wasn't the right time and place.

 _'Someday, Oka...'_ he promised her.


	12. Loved

**Friday, before school**

Oka's POV

Yesterday was just... insane. She still couldn't get over everything that happened. Her vision, the nurse, and Shin...

But she had to stay focused. She knew there was a murderer on the schoolgrounds. She had to be careful where she spends her time, and with who. Generally, she knew it was safer to be in a larger group than with, say, one person. And when she was alone, she had to stay on high alert, and always be ready to fight back if she could, or run away to a safe spot. Like her home.

When she entered the school, she saw Taro on his way to their classroom. He stopped when he saw her.

„Hey" he greeted her.

„Ummm...hi.." she said.

„Are you busy today?" he asked. At first, she was going to say 'no'. She would love to spend the whole day with him, just like Wednesday. But she remembered the killer. She wasn't safe with Taro She had to deny his offer. For her own good.

„Well, actually... I am" she lied. She hated lying, especially to him.

„Oh" she surprised him. Did he know she was lying? What would he think of her now? She was obviously ditching him on purpose. What if he felt guilty because of her? She didn't want him to think it was something personal.

She threw her bag over her shoulder and ran off to the Occult Club.

Taro's POV

What happened to her? Yesterday, she acted normal, and now...? He recalled their last conversation yesterday. She said she had something important to do. He almost regretted he didn't follow her. Where had she gone? And then, he realzied what the obvious answer was. Her club. He thought he hated it. Or maybe she lied to him... Maybe she was tricking him to make him like her, while in reality, there was nothing wrong. But... she seemed so honest.

Maybe she went to her club because someone forced her to.

Either way, he had to ask her about this as soon as they'd meet again.

It was the first time he'd ever doubted Oka, but if his suspicions turned out to be true, then... he wouldn't give her a second chance.

Oka's POV

She pushed the door open. Supana was the only one inside. The girl waved at her, enthusiasticly. She walked towards her, and sat on the floor next to her.

„Hi!" Supana exclaimed. She missed her. She was always so cheerful, and energetic. „Why didn't you come on Wednesday?" I saw you at school, but I thought you were busy..so..."

Oka looked at Supana. How should she respond..? Nobody else was inside, except for them. She leaned towards the younger girl and asked her:

„Can you keep a secret?" Supana nodded, excitedely. „But... you can't tell anyone else in the club..."

„Just tell me, you know you can trust me!" the girl answered, and Oka prepared herself for what she was about to say.

"I... I haven't been honest with all of you" she started, and lowered her voice even more. "I didn't want to come to the club..." Supana looked shocked.

"But, Oka... you always wanted to come here. You're the leader, without you, this club wouldn't even exist!'

Supana was right. She was the leader, and she had her responsibilities.

"Why didn't you want to join us?" she asked her. Oka looked around the room to ensure nobody else was listening. "Come on, you can tell me!" Supana's reasuring smile convinced her.

"There's this... boy... from my class.." she started. "He's.."

But before she could finish, she heard the door open behind her. She snapped her head towards the sound.

Shin was standing a few meters away from them.

She straightened up, but didn't stand up. He briefly looked at both of them. How much had he heard.? Well, he probably knew about Taro already. But still.. she had no idea why, but she didn't think it was right for her to talk about Taro when Shin was listening. It just felt.. wrong. She couldn't explain it. No, she knew why she didn't want to do it. She didn't trust him enough. It was simply a matter of trust, and nothing more.

"'sup?" Supana was always the first one to talk.

He just shrugged and sat next to them.

"What do you know about auras, Supana?" Oka didn't expect him to talk about it at all.

"Well..." the girl started, her gaze was wandering around the room. She knew how Supana must'd been feeling. The question seemed simple, but none of them knew the answer. "It's... I honestly have no idea" she admitted.

"So we don't know anything" Shin said, after a moment of silence. Supana nodded. She seemed surprised. None of them ever thought much of something that seemed so basic.

"All I know is that they can be either black or white. No greys" Oka spoke up. Both Supana and Shin looked at her when she said it. It was something she didn't know about until her vision yesterday. "And a back aura is very rare"

All of them thought about what she said for a while, before Supana spoke up.

"But.. that's not right! People can't be divided into good and evil."

She was right. There was no such thing as objecitve good or objective evil. So maybe the auras meant something completely different.

"They can" Shin argued. "If someone has a black aura, it means they never did anything good. When there is no light, there is darkness"

His words were surprisingly deep and meaningful. She never viewed the world as something good or evil, but Shin seemed to believe that deep down, everyone's black or white. It was strange, considering the fact that he had a dark aura himself. Did he really think of himself as a bad person who never did anything good? Sure, he could easily be called insensitive or arrogant, but evil? No. Thinking about what he just said, she felt even more strongly that it's not one's personality that affects the auras.

"Maybe it's not so simple..." she started. She had a theory, but she wanted to disscuss it with the others. "Maybe an aura doesn't have anything to do with one's personality. I agree with Supana, nobody is completely evil or completely good"

"Assuming you're right.." Shin argued. She hadn't convinced him yet. "What is the point of the aura, anyway?"

"I don't know" she answered, truthfully. But the fact that they didn't know the answer only meant that they had to look for more possibilities, and ask more questions. They had to be open-minded, otherwise they could never find the answer.

She found a way to convince him.

"But do you really believe that anyone with a dark aura is a monster with no chance for redemption?"

Shin's POV

She knew extacly what she was doing and what she was hoping to acheive, didn't she? She asked him this question because she was hoping he would change his mind. But he would never take back what he said.

He looked into Oka's eyes. They had a feeling of hope in them. She was sure he would agree with her. But he wouldn't.

She didn't know him like he did. Nobody did. She really thought there was hope for him. She would most likely be happy if he was like Taro – but he could never be like him. It was... naive of her, but still kind of touching. If only she cared for him as much as he did for her...

He was a bad person, he knew it. He cared not for other people, or their feelings. Except for Oka. But what he felt for her didn't change him as a person. He was egoistic, impulsive, and aggressive. There was no good in him. Even if Oka wanted desperately to see it, she could never find it. It wasn't there and it never was. She was right. He was a monster.

He finally managed to answer her:

"I do"

He made himself clear.

Oka's POV

She didn't expect his answer. He was either completely stupid, or so stubborn he didn't want to change his mind. She didn't try to argue with him any further.

The remaining time until 8 AM passed quite unpleasantly and she was relieved when she finally went to her class.

 **Lunchtime, Friday**

Supana's POV

It was lunchtime and Supana was heading to the Occult Club once again. Their previous meeting this morning was.. strange, even for them. She noticed the odd way Oka was acting today.

First, she admitted she didn't want to go to the club, and told her about some boy from her class. Supana assumed he was the cause of her abscense. She was really curious about that boy. Who was it? Was Oka... in love? The girl sqeaked internally.

But what was even more interestig to her was Oka's reaction when she saw Shin. What was going on beetween them? She seemed afraid of talking about that boy from her class. Was she simply shy? Or maybe she didn't want Shin to know about it, specifically. Could it be...? Oooh, now it was getting really interesting. She couldn't wait to learn more about Oka's love life. She realized already that her particular interest in those things was slightly creepy, but she didn't care. It wasn't like any guys were interested in _her,_ anyway.

She entered the room, and only Kokuma Jutsu was inside. They were BFFs since Kokuma joined the club. Since she didn't really hang out with anyone other than the club members, and Oka... wasn't really a great company, she and Kokuma kind of.. started hanging out together. She leaned against a wall next to her friend, and she closed her book.

"Hey, 'kuma.." she whispered in her ear. "I think I have a new OTP"

Kokuma just smiled at her. It wasn't the first time she shared some gossip with her. They both seemed to have completely different personalities and interests, but they were getting along well, nonetheless.

"Who is so lucky this time?" Kokuma asked her. Ii wasn't like she was interested in Supana's half-imaginary ships, it was kind of a game for them. They just enjoyed eachother's company, so it didn't really matter if any of them cared.

"Our club leaders" she giggled. Kokuma gave her a questioning look.

"Really?" Supana nodded. "No way. That's not happening any time soon"

"You'd be surprised" she looked around the room to see if anyone was there. They were still alone.

"Is there something I should know?" Kokuma asked her. "Last time I checked, they were pretty pissed at eachother"

"Oh, come on... You just don't understand.." Kokuma was always sceptical about the whole _'love'_ thing. She wasn't sure why, but almost everytime she told her about some people, she said it's not possible and that she's just daydreaming. Maybe she was. But she could only imagine how sad her life would be if she never used her imagination.

"I guess I never will.." Kokuma concluded. Of course she didn't want to understand. Ughh... maybe even best friends can't be perfect.

 **After school, Friday**

Taro's POV

He hadn't seen Oka since the morning. Where was she all this time? Well, he saw her in the classroom, but he had no idea where she spent the rest of the schoolday.

Why was she avoiding him? He couldn't had scared her off, right? No, whatever she was doing, it wasn't his fault. Then why did he feel bad about it? Maybe he missed her. He had to find her, and ask her what was wrong.

They left heir classrom, and he immidiately approached her. He tapped her on the shoulder, and she turned around. She seemed nervous, even paranoid, like she wnted to run away as fast as possible.

"What's wrong?" he asked her. "Why are you avoiding me?"

Oka's POV

She couldn't tell him the truth. If the killer heard her now, they would both be marked for death. She couldn't risk it.

"Everything is okay" she lied, and hoped that for once, he couldn't see right through it. "I just.. need a break. From.. all of this" it was all happening so quickly, it was true, but did she want it to stop? No, she didn't.

He didn't seem convinced.

"it's alright, really" she assured him. "It's not your fault. If I'll ever want to talk, I will"

He looked at her deeply, and stepped closer.

She held her breath as he raised his hand. He laid it on her arm, and she shivered at the touch.

"Whatever the reason, don't wait too long" he said, and left. He just left.

She was standing there, frozen, for a moment, staring at him until he disappeared in the crowd. He didn't want her to leave him. He was gentle enough to not force her to spend time with him, unlike... some people. But he desperately wanted to be with her. And she felt the same way. But it wasn't so simple. She couldn't remain where she was any longer. She ran all the way to the Occult Club.

It wasn't fair. They both wanted to be together, so why couldn't they? This... feeling... She recognised it only once it hurt. She wanted so badly to be with him. When she was alone, she couldn't stop thinking about him. And when he was close, she was so... happy.

...

It was love. She loved Taro. She loved him so much!

She didn't know why, but finally admitting it brought her joy despite everything she was going through. Oh, what a feeling that was! She hoped to never lose it. It was something she couldn't describe, yet felt so essential to her life. She had no idea how she could live without it, now that she knew it.

She came into the Occult Club. Everyone was already inside. It was strange, considering that she was almost never late to the meetings. Oka wondered what could'd stopped her...

Suddenly. The door was opened, revealing the paniced girl standing on the other side.

"Guys! Help!" she yelled. She was running, that was for sure. Her breathing was heavy and sharp. What happened to her? "You have to... she's... They found the body...!"


	13. Guilt

**Lunchtime, Friday**

Muja's POV

She was sitting by her desk and looking out of the window, at the lonely cherry tree at the back of the school.

She hoped that one day, she would find love. She sighed. These were just her dreams. Since yesterday, she hadn't met any more students. It seemed like nobody in this school really needed her. But... the door was opening! Someone was inside!

She turned around and stood up, cheerfully. Somebody was visiting her! She couldn't wait to help them, to talk to them about their problems... all she wanted was everyone to be happy.

„How can I...?" she stopped in the middle of the sentence. The girl standing in the doorway didn't look like she needed her help. Her eyes were blank, and empty, as she smiled a chilling smile. She had white gloves on her hands.

Muja took a step back...

„Wait, stop..." she tried to reason with her. The girl stood there, listening to her. „I can help you, you don't have to do this..."

She took another step back as the girl stepped closer. She tripped and fell onto the hard ground. She knew she wouldn't ever get up now.

The girl walked up to her, and tilted her head to look at her with an emotionless expression.

"There is always a better way..." she whispered, and saw something fall onto her. She felt sharp pieces of glass pierce her skull.

She didn't know if she screamed.

 **After classes, Friday**

Kokuma's POV

Supana was looking around the room, her eyes wandering and never stopping anywhere, What happened to her? She stood up and ran up to her. The girl turned to her, but she still seemed extremely anxious, paranoid even.

"What happened, Supana?" she asked her, trying to keep her voice calm. It was hard, even if she considered herself a rational person, when her best friend was stressed, she was as well. "Tell us everything"

Supana looked at her for support, and she nodded, reassuringly.

"I was on my way to the club after class... and I was walking past the nurse's office, when I saw... some teachers... outside" she stopped for a few seconds, seemingly gathering the courage to continue.

"Go on" she encouraged her. "We're listening"

"I asked them what happened, and they told me... there... there'd been an accident... the nurse is d- dead"

Oka spoke up, for the first time.

"I'm going there"

Shin, Chojo, and Daku joined her and they left the room. Supana turned to leave, but she put a hand on her shoulder, stopping her.

"Don't" she told her. Supana seemed surprised by the sudden gesture. "You've seen enough for today"

Supana smiled lightly. She was still scarred by what she'd seen. They sat on the floor in the middle of the room and chatted.

Oka's POV

As they made their way to the nurse's office, she realized that Shin was walking right behind her. She sped up a bit, but he followed her. Finally, she sighed, and looked down at her feet. It could had been worse. He could'd taken advantage of her when he found her lying unconcious on the floor yesterday. But he didn't. She still had no idea why was his attention constantly focused on her for the majority of this week. Sometimes, she wished she had the power to read people's minds. It was one of these times. Shin was impossible to figure out, and she felt like if she knew what made him act the way he did for the last few days, it would be very important for her. Maybe even life-changing. He was still a complete mystery, even after they'd been friends for around a year now. It was incredibly frustrating. What was he trying to hide? And what was he hoping to accomplish?

They reached the nurse's office. She recognized the teacher from class 2-2, standing inside. She looked at hem, and warned them:

"Stay outside. The police is on their way" she said.

She stepped closer, but still avoided going insde. She wasn't going to disobay the teacher.

The inside of the office was a horrible sight. Muja Kina's body was lying on the floor close to her desk. A few shelves from the wall next to her, and their contents seemed to have collapsed on top of her. Spilled chemicals and shattered glass were most likely to be the main cause of her death. There were small pools of blood everywhere around the body – it was a quick, but painful death, she concluded.

Poor Muja... how could something like this happen to her? She was so sweet and nice...

The murderer. It had to be her. She wouldn't believe the police if they called it an 'accident'. It was obvious now that she knew about the most obvious suspect.

She looked to Shin. He seemed tense, but other than that, he was completely unshaken. It wasn't like they saw dead bodies everyday in their club. He seemed completely devoid of empathy. But... he wasn't. She knew he had feelings. She saw it yesterday. So... why was he acting like he didn't care at all..?

Shin's POV

Looking at the young nurse's body made him sick. He threatened her the day before she died. What if someone knew about it? Could it be used against him? What if he somehow contributed to her death? Maybe it was his fault... this accident. What if the police found out what happened yesterday? Would he be the main suspect for a murder? What if they already knew what he did? What if...?!

"We need to talk" Oka's voice brought him back to reality. He turned to her. "Alone"

They found a secluded spot down the hall and stopped there. Oka looked around to make sure nobody else was watching them.

"Do you think it could have been... her?" she asked him. Right. She was talking about the murderer. He was so focused on panicing and considering a thousand different possibilities to even remember that there was a possible serial killer on schoolgrounds.

"...yes, it's possible" he answered. "But we have the whole weekend to think about it"

She nodded.

"We still don't know who she is..." Oka added.

"That's why we have to wait. Eventually, she will leave more proof to identify her" it was the most reasonable course of action. However, Oka seemed to not like it.

"But how many people will die before she makes a mistake?! Two? Ten? Thirty?" she excalimed. He never considered such an approach. It wasn't important how many lives would be sacrificed to stop her – if she wasn't stopped, she would go free to kill again. And again. But Oka's emotions were blinding her – she coldn not see the bigger meaning of her actions. If she only cared for people's lives, she should know that they had to stop this girl at any cost – and that is, by any means necessary.

"Then what should we do?" he asked her. She surely didn't have a better solution.

"I... I don't know..." she admitted. She knew they had to wait. There was no other solution. Unless they were to put themselves in danger.

They both realized waiting patiently was their only option. They only had to be careful.

"Watch out" he warned her. He wouldn't want her to get herself killed. "She could be anywhere"

She nodded, and he left.

They spent the rest of the schoolday in their club.

 **Evening, Friday**

Shin's POV

It's been a rough day for all of them. Some of the students already knew about the nurse's death, and the rest would learn on Monday.

He was already home for a while now. After he finished his homework, he considered doing something productive, but he didn't feel like it. Instead, he laid on his bed and texted Info-chan:

 _"Do you know who killed the nurse?"_ she had to know it, right? But, of course, even if she did, she wouldn't tell him. He only asked her because he was bored and he wanted to hear what she had to say about it.

 _"I do"_ she texted back. She was quite quick, even for herself. Maybe she didn't have anything particular to do, like him. _"But I won't tell you"_ she added.

 _"But I wouldn't recommend harming her"_

Was Info-chan serious? Well, obviously if he knew the murderer's identity, he would tell the faculty about it and there would be no way she would be capable of getting away with what she'd done. But going after her himself? No, it was way too risky.

 _"And why is that?"_ he asked her.

 _"You have a common goal"_ Info-chan replied, and he knew she wouldn't tell him more. But he knew something already.

He recalled his first exchange with Info-chan. She mentioned that helping him would be beneficial to her, somehow. Was the murderer... her client?! Was she helping her kill both Kokona and the nurse?

 _"Are you helping her? This murderer?!"_ he wrote. He was hoping she would say 'no', but he already knew the answer.

 _"She's desperate"_ she texted him back. _"She would do anything to reach her goal – even if it means doing something for me, in exchange..."_ and he didn't want to know what she meant by _'doing something for her'_.

 _"How could you help her? Do you even realize what happened because of you?!"_ he asnwered. It wasn't smart, but what she was doing for the money was disgusting, and horrible.

 _"Don't judge me. At least I know what I'm doing – you're just a heartless beast"_ she said. It hurt, even though he knew she was right.

The situation escalated too quickly, and he didn't want to make Info-chan his enemy. He had to fix it. Which meant... he had to apologize. He was thankful it was through a text, and that he didn't need to tell her he's sorry in person.

 _"I'm sorry"_ he texted her after a while. He hoped she would understand.

She made him wait almost two minutes for her response.

 _"I get it - you got angry, we both did. Let's just move on now"_ she answered.

There was a longer pause before he recalled what he wanted to ask her.

 _"Could the police suspect me?"_ if anyone could tell him, it was her.

 _"There's no evidence. They have no idea you two even met"_ she assured him and her word was enough for him. But, even if thee was nothing linking him to the nurse's death, he felt... bad..? Was it because of the nurse? This silly woman who he'd only known for about three minutes? It didn't make any sense, so why did he feel that way? He kept telling himself: _"Stop it!"_ , but it didn't make it go away. What was it, even? ...g _uilt?_ Was he really feeling bad because someone got hurt? It was ridiculous, he didn't even know her that well. He never even learned her name..! It was meant to calm him down, but, somehow it didn't. It only made everything worse. It wasn't going to simply disappear anytime soon.

So finally, instead of trying to ignore it, he dove straight into it.

He was such a horrible person. This nurse didn't do anything to him, and he acted so rudely. He made her feel bad the last day before she died.

Did she have a family? Did anyone miss her? What if, for someone, she was like Oka...? He was so selfish. He didn't know anything about her, and he dared to judge her.

He was the real reason she died. It was all his fault.

He didn't send Info-chan any more texts that day. of you!


	14. The bucket update

**Monday, before school**

Oka's POV

The weekend passed pretty quickly. She did some research regarding auras, but hadn't found anything she hadn't known already. She couldn't wait to see Taro today, but she still had to remain careful.

She entered the school and changed her shoes at her her locker.

? POV

Oka Ruto was frustrating. She'd been flirting with her Senpai for more than a week now, and she always managed to slip away. Right when she had the chance, this girl suddenly disappeared, or wasn't alone nymore. She was growing desperate. Info-chan assured her that she would handle Oka herself, but she was still alive and breathing. She wouldn't be surprised if the sneaky bitch made a deal with Oka to protect her and sabotage her. Oh, she would regret it...

Well... if she couldn't kill Oka, she could at least humiliate her to damage her reputation.

She'd already done a favour for Sakyu – she stole her ring, and then 'found it' for her – ridiculously easy. Now she told her new friend to steal Oka's bag when she wasn't looking and put it right where she needed it. Sakyu never liked Oka – she enjoyed bullying her. She, herself never understood how hurting others could be 'fun' to someone. To her, it was simply to reach her ultimate goal – not for some sick pleasure. Sakyu's attitude was disgusting for her – but she was useful. She told her she was going to play a prank on Oka, and it was enough to convince her to help.

Meanwhile, she was preparing the rest – in the girls bathroom on the third floor. The buchet she was holding was heavy, full of cold water. She grabbed it and peeked out of the bathroom. Good. It was early enough for nobody to be here except for her. She made her way to the rooftop. There, she found Midori Gurin and Inkyu Basu. Inkyu wouldn't be an obstacle – she knew about _Sakyu's plans_ to prank Oka, and she was already standing by the railing, ready to watch everything from a safe distance. Midori, on the other hand... she was just a weirdo. Nobody at school knew who was she e-mailing all day, and what was she talking about. She was in the gaming club, so she was most likely just a way too immersed fan of some game. She didn't even look at her as she walked up to the railing with the bucket. She put it on the floor, and watched the school enterence. Sakyu placing Oka's bag there was a sign that they could begin. They waited in patience.

 **Warning! Mature content** : suggestive themes and nudity

Oka's POV

She turned to take her bag, but it wasn't there. She looked around... Could someone take her bag by mistake? No, it was impossible. It had to be around here somewhere...

It was about three meters from her locker, right outside of school. How did it get there..? Did someone put it there as a prank? She was growing more and more uneasy. Koharu Hinata from class 2-1 passed her. She seemed to be in a hurry.

She walked up to her bag, and crouched to pick it up, when she saw a small white note on it. She read:

 _'Get_

 _wet_

 _bitch"_

What? Who could had wrote such a thing...?!

"Kyaaa!" she screamed. She felt something cold on her body. Was it... water? She shivered in the cold. How could someone do this to her?! She looked up, but nobody was there. What...?

What should she do? Her uniform was soaked in water, and her hair was a mess... bigger than it usually was, that is. Not to mention that the wet clothes sticked to her skin, making her extremely uncomfortable.

She looked at the gym teacher, who was standing by the enterence. She was so engaged in a conversation with Koharu, she didn't even notice what happened to her. What was she going to do...? She considered just running back home, but it was the most ridiculous thing to do.

Then she recalled that there was a girl's locker room where her gym uniform was. She never used the room before, because she never had to, but now it seemed like the most logical thing to do.

She ran.

Suddenly, when she was halfway there, she bumped into something... soft. She fell onto her back. At least the grass softened the fall. She looked up and saw Taro. Why was he here? She realised how she must had been looking at that moment. She was lying on the grass on her back. From where he was standing, her underwear was clearly visible under her skirt.

She stood up as quick as possible. She tried to cover herself up somehow, but she failed miserably as all of her clothes were too wet to be of any use.

"H-hi..." she said. She couldn't stop her face from turning bright red. Her whole skin seemed to be burning.

"What happened to you...?" Taro asked her. She turned her head to avoid eye contact, she was too embarassed to even look at him. She crossed her arms to save what little was left of her dignity. If he looked at her closer, he would, of course still see the folds on her bra.

"That's, ummm... a long...story..." she spat out, even though she would rather be anywhere else and with anyone else. She managed to glance at him for a moment. He was looking at her. But not at her face, oh no.

Taro's POV

He had no idea what happened to her, but he was glad it did. She wasn't really trying to hide herself, so he continued eyeing her. Everywhere he could before he would lose the chance to do so. Her thin, shivering legs, the folds of her short skirt that clerly wasn't covering wht it was supposed to cover, the outline of her bra underneath her shirt, which she was failing miserably to hide with her tiny, feminine hands. And her huge eyes, begging him to stop looking at her like this.

But... they weren't sure themselves. And it was obvious from her expression and the way she was biting her lower lip. She wasn't sure if she wanted him to stop looking. Some part of her wanted him to look at her. And he could see it. So he stepped closer and looked into her eyes.

She took a shaky breath when he came closer. She was scared. But he wasn't. He placed his hands on her shoulders. She crossed her arms even tighter.

"There's no need for that" he said. She was beautiful. She had no reason to hide it. Especially in front of him.

"...Taro.." she breathed.

He put a finger on her lip, silencing her. Her full lips were trembling ever so slightly under his touch. She looked at him with those shining eyes, so hopeless. So innocent.

He bent down just a little more and let his hands slide down her arms. Her arms fell to her sides. She wanted him closer. She wasn't resisting at all anymore.

He placed his hands on her sides and moved them down her back. Only a bit... it was enough.

He touched the side of her head with one of his hands and said.

"I hope to see you soon" he then backed off, turned around and left.

Oka's POV

She had to go to the locker room. Now.

She continued walking. What was Taro going to do..? He left her just like that... Like none of this even mattered to him. But, it wasn't true! He cared, and she knew it. He was only afraid. She didn't blame him. She was scared too. Of all of it.

And it all happened so fast... One moment, she felt his touch on her lips, and then... he was gone. Maybe she was scared, but if he took the chance, she wouldn't resist. It was all starting to make sense now. He liked her, and there was no denying that. But... did he want the same she did?

…. would he spend his whole life with her...?

? POV

As soon as Oka was splashed with water, she threw away the bucket and ran off. She didn't want to be spotted.

She ran downstairs as fast as she could. Half of her plan was already done. She ran to the sewing room on the first floor and grabbed a pair of scissors. She put them in a hidden pocket of her skirt, and sneaked out of the room before anyone could see she was there.

Now she had a chance to end this girl. She only had to get to the locker room in the right time.

She was outside of school when she saw Oka enter the building.

She sneaked inside behind her, careful not to make her presense known to her target. The moment she came in, though, someone approached her. She stood up and saw Koharu.

"Hi there!" the green-haired girl greeted her cheerfully. She tried to dodge her somehow, but she was blocking the way. And Oka was already in the next room. _Fuck_. She had to hurry.

"I have some private business to attend to here. Would you mind giving me some space?" she asked Koharu and hoped the girl wouldn't take her time. She seemed surprised at first. She could just kill her right now. She was already wondering how could she dispose of the body and kill Oka before she could run away, when Koharu nodded and said:

"Sure, I can respect that" as she turned to leave, she added: "See you around" Good. She was could finally do what she came here to do. She wouldn't hesitate to kill Koharu if she had to, of course, but she didn't want to make a mess. More victims meant more suspicions, and she didn't want that.

She turned to see if Koharu was far enough, but she saw two girls chatting near the enterence. Witnesses. Why was everything so difficult today?

She couldn't kill Oka with those girls standing here. She would have to either kill three people on one day, something she couldn't afford to do, or try to dodge them while disposing of the evidence. Impossible. At least, way too risky to try.

Finally, she pulled out her cellphone and went to the next room. Oka wasn't going to die today, but it didn't mean she couldn't take advantage of her current situation.

When she entered the next room, she saw that Oka has already stripped and was starting to walk towards the bathroom section. It was a perfect opprotunity for her. She hid behind the first row of lockers and snapped a picture right when her prey emerged from the other side. It was a full-body shot, taken from the side. She wasn't sure if Info-chan's clients would like it, but she decided she would just take as many as she could and send them to Info-chan to see how much they were worth. She quickly walked behind the next row of lockers and started to crawl. The floor was wet, so she had to be careful not to slip. She was right behind Oka now. She almost laid on the floor and raised her camera to take a perfect shot. She knew this kind of pictures was the most valued one.

She never understood how Info-chan decided how much every picture was worth. To her, it was all meaningless. Oka could'd been dressed, and it wouldn't make any difference. But Info-chan paid well for those shots, so she was taking more and more of them, as they didn't require that much more effort than a simple pantyshot. Sometimes, when she had some free time beetween eliminating her rivals, she stalked some girls and manipulated them to take off their clothes. Sometimes it was like with Oka, but she had other ways of doing it, as well...

She rolled and disappeared behind the nearest wall before Oka could notice her. She stopped for a moment and looked around, but continued walking towards the bathroom. She followed her and took a sneaky picture of her from the behind right before she got inside the bath. She hid behind a shower and waited for Oka to lget outside. She looked at the three pictures she had so far. She was getting better at it. She was sure Info-chan's favours she would gain for them would be used eventually.

Finally, she heard the water move slighty and she came out of her hiding spot, ready to take the best shots. Quickly, before she could see her...

As Oka turned to get up, she took the first picture. Her arm was partially covering her breasts, but it was still a good shot. The next one was taken when Oka stood up and was about to leave the bath. It was the best one yet. A frontal picture of her whole budy, still wet from the bath. She crouched down a bit more as Oka took the first step to leave the bath, parting her legs for just a moment, enough for her to take another picture. Perfect. Oka looked at her direction, but she hid on time.

"Is someone there?" she called out, weakly. She looked around, but her hiding spot was right where she couldn't see her. Oka crossed her arms on her chest and hurried to her locker. She only managed to take one last shot rwhen the girl was opening her locker. Nice one.

Her job was done, so she sneaked out of the room before Oka managed to get dressed and leave the building. She passed the two chatting girls, who couldn't care less, and headed to the back of the school, from where she could text Info-chan about the pictures. This day wasn't so bad after all.


	15. Friends?

**Before class, Monday**

Supana's POV

They were sitting together with Kokuma in the Occult Club room. They were still alone, so they had time for a bit of gossip. Right now, they were discussing Supana's newest OTP.

„How would you even call it?" Kokuma asked her. She was always so sceptical. „Shinka? That doesn't even sound right"

Supana was truly offended.

„No, of course not!" she answered. „I like to call it Hiruto"

„Nah" Kokuma said. „I don't ship it"

Supana felt hopeless. How could someone be so stubborn? It was obvious something was going on beetween them.

„ Why?" she asked her. There had to be a reason!

„I don't..." Kokuma started, but Supana stopped her because she could finish.

„Just tell me!" she demanded. It got out a lot harsher and a lot louder than she wanted it to.

„I don't like boys, okay?!"

Kokuma spat out, and immidiatley covered her mouth when she realized what she just said. Supana froze.

Was this why she always so uninterested in her gossip...? Has she been like this back when they first met a year ago? She seemed ashamed of what she just said. Sure, it was shocking for Supana, but it wasn't something to be ashamed of. She should have told her earlier. After all, it wouldn't change anything beetween them, right? Or did it...?

She looked at Kokuma in fear.

„Why... didn't you tell me...?" she asked her when she regained the ability to speak.

„I wanted to but... I was scared... I didn't want to ruin our friendship or make you feel uncomfortable"

What? Just because she liked girls rather than boys didn't men she liked _every_ girl she met. No that's not how that works, right? But why was she so worried if it had nothing to do with Supana and their frinedship...?

„It's fine, Kokuma" she told her best friends. „It doesn't change anything. I'm your frined, remember?" it was a statement she hoped would cheer her up, but Kokuma was ominously silent.

„What's wrong?" Supana asked, much softer now. She didn't want her best friend to be so upset. Kokuma looked back at her, hesitantly. She bit her lip. It was clear she had something more to say, but wasn't sure if it was the right time.

Kokuma's POV

She was staring at her best friend. She took it a lot better than she thought she would. She was shocked but, it was better than if she was afraid of her or considered her disgusting.

Kokuma was always an outcast. But when one girl found out her secret back in middle school, the rumor was spread and she became a subject of embarassing gossip as well as many cruel pranks. She didn't want it to happen again. She moved to a new school, and hoped to keep her secret safe there.

But when she met Supana a year ago, she knew it was something more than a simple crush. She was the kindest, sweetest, and most charming person she'd ever known. When the Occult Club was first founded, she joined immidiately when she heard that Supana was interested. She hoped for a friendship, simply to be able to see her face, to hear her voice everyday. She never had enough of her. She never missed a club meeting, and never missed a chance to meet with Supana.

She hoped Supana would never learn of her crush, but now she would surely figure it out. What if she would hate her? What if she told someone else? Her whole life would be ruined if it was like in middle school. She wouldn' take it. But Supana already knew. And the choice was up to her – Kokuma's fate was in her hands and she could only hope she would be like she always thought she was. That she wouldn't spread the rumor about her, simply because they were friends.

„Supana...promise me... " she said, after a moment of silence. „Promise me that you won't tell anyone about it"

Supana nodded, completely without hesitation.

„Of course I won't tell anyone" Supana said. „You're my best friend, I could never betray you!"

Kokuma looked at Supana, gratefully. She was indeed an amazing friend. And the person she loved with all her heart.

Shin's POV

Before school, he came into the Occult Club before anyone else. He stayed there for a while, but then Supana and Kokuma came in, too, he left the room.

He texted Info-chan.

 _„Do you know what's going on with Oka? I haven't seen her today"_ he sent her the messege and waited.

 _„She's safe. She had some trouble with the Basu sisters, and right now she's on the second floor most likely going to her classroom already"_ Info-chan was as precise as always. He appreciated it. Although... what happened with the Basu sisters? He knew they hated Oka, but if Info-chan said she was safe now, so there was no need to worry about it.

 _"Isn't it boring?"_ he asked her. He wasn't going to the Occult Club again, so he figured out he needed something to occupy himself with.

 _"What?"_ she texted back, not sure what he meant by that.

 _"What you're doing. Watching people, selling pantyshots...?"_

 _"I assure you, it was worth the effort~"_ she texted back. Again, with the mysterious responses. She was hiding a lot, but right now, she was most likely being playful.

 _"I can imagine seeing your classmates' underwear must be very amusing for you"_ he answered. He was wondering if he went too far.

 _"It's not just for the pictures"_ she said. _"They just add to the fun"_

If it wasn't all for the dirty photos, why did was she doing all of it?

 _"Then why are you doing it?"_ he was genuinely curious. Info-chan's mysterious ways began to interest him more and more every time they spoke to eachother. Maybe it was his natural interest for the unknown, or maybe it was Info-chan herself who puzzled him so much.

 _"I can't tell you"_ she texted back. Of course. If it was so easy, everyone would know the truth already.

 _"But I can tell you about other things~"_ so mysterious. _"Is there something you want to know? I know everything about the students here"_

It was tempting. The knowledge she was offering him... the power it would grant him. He could use information to achieve his goals – maybe even to get Oka away from Taro somehow.

But there was still the issue of the Basu sisters.

 _"What can you tell me about the Basu sisters? Are they dangerous?"_ he asked her. Even though power was tempting, Oka came first. And if he could use Info-chan to ensure her safety, he would.

 _"They hate Oka because she stalks them everyday. At least, until last week"_ it was the first text he got from her. He knew that already. _"Sakyu is older and way more influential than her sister. She orders her around and plans everything. Inkyu herself isn't a threat"_ she then said. That was something he never noticed before. Interesting... maybe it was something he could use to his advantage. If Sakyu didn't want to hurt Oka, Inkyu wouldn't disobey.

 _"Last week, on Wednesday, they attacked Oka in the corridor on the second floor after classes. They seemed to have something more planned, though"_ she paused. What did she mean? Did they want to hurt Oka? Hurt his llight? Destroy the only good in him? If they did anything to Oka, he would make sure they paid the price. They wouldn't live to see another day if they did anything to her. He woudn't hesitate to hurt them in return.

 _"Thankfully, Taro was there and helped her"_ Info-chan added. Good. For once, he was almost grateful Taro was so close with Oka.

 _"This morning, Sakyu Basu stole Oka's bag, allowing Inkyu to splash her with water. So she had to go to the locker room to change her clothes"_

 _"That's why she wasn't in the club today?"_ he asked her, simply for clarification.

 _"Correct"_ she answered.

These two... he didn't care why they did it, they would pay. He wanted them to suffer. He wanted them to die.

 _"Where do they spend lunchtime?"_ he asked her without hesitation. He didn't care about anything else. He wanted them to pay for what they did.

 _"Woah, slow down"_ she warned him. _"It's not the smartest thing to do"_

Was she stopping him? He thought she was his ally. She wasn't going to stand the way of his revenge.

 _"Aren't you my ally? If you want to stop me, you can't"_

 _"No, that's not what I meant"_ she answered. She seemed to remain calm, even in a situation like this. _"I merely told you it's not the best way"_

He didn't answer. If she wanted to offer him something better, now was her chance.

 _"I can help you"_ she said. _"But only if you do as I say"_

Was she expecting him to obey her?

 _"And why would I listen to you?"_ he asked her.

 _"Listen. Unlike you, I have some experience with this sort of thing. If you simply kill them and leave their bodies in plain sight, the police will come and arrest you. Secondly, the students will begin to be paranoid. It would make my job much harder"_

 _"I don't care for your job"_ he answered. _"And I don't care if I get caught"_

There was a long pause before Info-chan finally responded.

 _"If you get caught, you will never be able to have your precious Oka, and she will end up either with Taro, or dead"_ how did she know it? How would Oka be killed? Who would kill her?

But she had the point. Oka would never love a murderer. Even if it was all for her. There had to be another way...

 _"Then what do you suggest? If I decide to spare them for now?"_ if she had any ideas, now was the time to share them.

 _"Good. I see you're thinking again"_ she replied, and he barely resisted the urge to get into another fight with her.

 _"So what do you propose?"_ he asked her, and waited for her response. She better had a good plan that would be worth the effort.

 _"I need you to do something for me..."_


	16. Don't go there

**Lunchtime, Monday**

Oka's POV

After the crazy events of the morning, she had to change into her gym uniform. She hated the way it looked on her, but she had no choice but to wear it. Her only other option was the swimsuit...

The bue shorts were way to short, and she felt like some of her panties could cover more skin than them. Some people gave her odd looks when they saw her walking through the school. She saw it was almost 8 AM, and she was thankful she didn't have to go to the club. At least, now before lunchtime. She wouldn't be able to enter the room without blushing like crazy. She didn't want her club members to see her like this. But she knew she had to spend lunchtime somewhere, and she knew her responsibilities as the club leader.

So, after leaving her classroom, she headed downstairs to the first floor.

Taro's POV

He watched Oka leave the classroom and packed his things. He wondered where she would go. Should he follow her...?

He didn't want to seem like a stalker, but then again... it was for her own good. She was hiding something from him, and it meant something was wrong. And since she was his best friend, he had to help her somehow.

He got outside and watched her from a safe distance. She turned rght when she left the classroom and started descending the stairs.

She passed the second floor and kept going down. His worst prediction was coming true. She was going to the Occult Club.

How could it be? She said she didn't want to go there anymore. What was going on? He had to know why she kept coming back, even though it hurt her.

He made a choice. He sped up and grabbed her arm to turn her to face him.

"... hi..." she said, slightly shocked and scared by his sudden appearance.

"What's going on, Oka?" he asked her. He was tired of these games of hers. He didn't want any more lies.

"What do you mean?" she didn't quite get what he was trying to say. It appeared that she didn't think there was a problem at all. But the fact that she thought nothing was wrong was worrying, itself.

"Where were you going?" he asked her. Oka's eyes went wide when she realized what he was implying.

"No, no... it's not the way you think...!" she took a step back, but he followed her.

Oka's POV

How did he know?

Her face became pale as she thought about the possible consequences of Taro finding out about her secret. It wasn't like she didn't trust him enough, but she only wanted to keep this one thing to herself. And now he knew.

What was he going to think about her now? She kept secrets from him, she avoided him to spend time with other people. Theoretically, it wasn't wrong, but she felt really bad nonetheless. She shouldn't have tried to ditch him like that. It was only right to tell him the truth... wasn't it?

"I... I was going to my club.." she finally said. She saw the anger in his eyes, and she instinctively wanted to step back, but he put a hand on her shoulder, stopping her. He looked deep into her eyes as he spoke:

"What were you thinking? Are you insane?!" he said, and his raised voice made her afraid. She didn't want to make him angry. She wished he could just go away, leaving her alone and forgetting about the whole situation. She wanted to hide from him. From the consequences. But she chose to disobey him and he was her consequense. "You said you don't want to have to go to this club at all!"

At the same time, she wanted him to save her from her responsibilities. It would be so good to just let him take control of her. To free her.

It was true. She didn't want to have to go to her club.

"How do I know you're not being forced to go there?" he continued. Oka understood his reasoning, but he had to believe her. "You shouldn't go there"

Seeing her scared face, he took a step back and exhaled.

"I'm sorry" he managed after he regained his composure completely. It was alright. She understood why he reacted the way he did. There was nothing wrong with being angry with her.

He looked down at her and straight into her eyes, as he said: "I'm only doing this because I care about you" he finally confessed. Her heart skipped a beat when she heard him say it to her. He really did care about her. Maybe he even... loved... her... Like she loved him.

Thinking about her feelings for him only made her more anxious about the situation they were in. She couldn't manage to look at him anymore and she dropped her gaze to the floor. She felt her face heat up. She must'd been blushing. She slowly inhaled, and then released the air she was holding after she calmed down just enough to look at him again.

He noticed her blush and her nervousness. He smiled softly at her. He was so sweet. He knew what was best for her, and she trusted. He knew her like nobody else did. His smile made her heart flutter in her chest when he looked at her like nobody else could. He made her feel like nobody else could. He made her feel... special. Cared about. It was strange, they only knew eachother for a week and she felt like she knew him her entire life.

He moved even closer to her, making her gasp in surprise. He reached out to her and laid his hand on her cheek. Nobody'd ever touched her like this. But she didn't resist. She loved him, and she wanted to be with him. He gently cupped the side of her face as he spoke again, quietly and softly.

"They don't know you like I do. They don't care about you like I do" she was torn beetween pulling away from him and believe what he told her. She knew some of her clubmates cared about her just a little bit... Supana was her friend and she wanted the best for her, and Shin... she wasn't sure herself, but something was telling her she was somehow special to him. He either hated her or... was in some way fond of her.

"No" she heard herself say. This wasn't right. It would be easy to just give up and succumb to him, believing everything he said to her, and let him love her the way he wanted it. But... she had her own life, her own responsibilities. And Taro couldn't take control over her. _No._ This one word lingered in her mind for a long time. This was too much.

She took a step back. She didn't want to push Taro away from her, and thankfully, she didn't have to. He backed off with a concerned look on his face. _"I'm sorry, Taro. I'm so sorry"_ she kept repeating in her mind, as she ran away. She saw Taro's face every time she close her eyes. This wasn't right! She didn't want to hurt him, but she did. And she couldn't bear to look at him anymore. She had to hide. Even if it only delayed the consequences, she needed to think about this on her own.

She reached the Occult Club room's door and pushed it open.

The door closed behind her as she looked around the room. Everyone seemed to notice her arrival, but most of her clubmates went back to reading soon afterwards. Supana, however, had a slightly worried look on her face as she stared at her from the other end of the room. Shin put away his book and was looking at her as well, only his expression seemed way more tense.

Her back was pressed against the wall behind her as she took deep breaths in an attmept to steady herself. She must'd been looking very anxious, but she didn't care. Nobody was judging her in this one room.

She noted that Shin's gaze never left her when she collapsed onto the floor and sat down, still leaning against the wall.

Was it really wrong? Running away from Taro..? She didn't have the strenth to look him straight in the eye when she finally said "no" for the first time. What else could she'd done? She needed some time for herself to think about all of this.

She couldn't let Taro manipulate her. Tell her what to do. Especially regarding her club. He probably wouldn't believe her if she told him the truth. But the fate of the whole school depended on them. If they didn't perform the ritual every day, the events of last Wednesday could be repeated. Or... something even worse could happen. Meanwhile, they were still working to track down the murderer. After all, they were the only ones at school who knew that there was a killer among the students. And, as hard as it was for her to say this, Taro was distracting her. And it was dangerous to spend time with him, and not with the club. She needed to focus on her club for a few days... and she needed a break from Taro. It was just too much to handle at once.

She was already standing up, ready to take her spot in the middle of the room, when she heard the bell ring, signalling the end of lunchtime.

Taro's POV

He couldn't focus on the teacher's lecture in class. His mind kept returning to his converstaion with Oka. She was keeping secrets from him, and it was obvious. Whatever it was that she was doing in her club, she didn't want him to know about it. It was frustrating. Didn't she trust him? If she'd told him, he would be able to help her somehow for sure.

It was just too difficult. He just wanted to help her. And she was making it impossible.

He sighed as he looked at her again. He wasn't be mad at her. How could he be?


	17. The preparations

**After school, Monday**

Oka's POV

She didn't want to speak to Taro again after what happened on lunchtime. She was.. scared. And she absolutely couldn't miss a club meeting today. After the weekend, the spirits would be even more powerful and out of control than they usually were.

The ritual was always the same: once they all gathered inside the club and the moon was in the correct position, they locked the doors to the club so nothing could disturb them. Then, they would put on black, hooded cloaks and begin the ritual. The candles were the only sourse of the dim light in the room as they kneeled down around the pentagram in the middle of the room. Then, they would take eachother's hands to balance their energy and begin reaching out to the demon world. The whole time, they would beg all ghosts and demons to stay away from their school and its students, and to not harm any of them.

Oka always felt some incredible power inside her when they were all kneeling in the circle and chanting under their breaths. It couldn't be just the atmoshere of this room – it was magic and she knew it. She felt a phisical connection to the other dimension. It was always an incredible experience – connecting to something most people didn't even believe existed. And yet they felt it everyday. What more proof could anyone need to believe them?

After school she felt even more energized than usual. But.. soemthing ominous could be felt in the air. Something dark and disturbing. She didn't know what that was, but something was making her very uneasy about the next day. What was going on..? Maybe it was about one of her clubmates... she felt it during the ritual. Sometimes, she felt a glimpse of a thought, or emotions, coming from one of her clubmates when they linked their energy for the ritual... but she could never know who it was. What if someone from her club was in serious danger? She couldn't help but wonder what could happen to them tomorrow.

Supana's POV

They were walking in silence with Kokuma. They almost reached the school gate, where they usually seperated, but something about Kokuma made her worry. What was wrong?

Right when she was about to wave her goodbye and head outside, seperating from her, her friend stopped her. She turned to face her. Now she was really worried. What did Kokuma want to tell her? Did it have something to do with what she told her in the morning...? She swallowed and waited for her friend to explain everything.

"Supana, I... have to tell you something..." Kokuma looked down at her feet. She was... nervous? What was she going to do know? Was she hiding something from her? "I.. I don't know where to start, so I'll just... say it.."

Supana was now beyond shocked. What..? She didn't know if she wanted to answer her or wait for her to finish. She was afraid that if she interrupted her, Kokuma wasn't going to tell her at all. So she waited patiently.

"I... like you" Kokuma finally said. She couldn't believe what she just heard. It was her second confession in one day! What was going on? "A lot" at this point, the girl turned her head to the side. She was blushing, and she couldn't hide it. Supana was still motionless, partially too schocked, and partially not knowing how to react.

"Ever since we met last year..." she continued, but her voice was more silent. Supana could tell she was losing her confidence and was at a loss of words. "I just... couldn't tear my eyes away from you. You're the nicest, funniest, most confident person I've ever known"

This time, it was Supana's turn to blush. Did Kokuma really think this about her..? She would'd never guessed somebody could see her as such a great person.

"And... I think you're the most beautyful girl in the world"

 _'No. She did_ not _just say that...'_

She thought her heart was going to stop there and then, just hearing that. Her face went pale, and her knees were threating to fail her and let her collapse. How could it be? Kokuma... really considered her this attractive? And all this time, she kept thinking about how none of the boys would never notice her... yet she didn't expect anyone to admire her like that. But Kokuma... yes, she was her best friend, she liked her a lot, and she also cared about her and trusted her, but... not like this. She didn't want to let her friend down. Or make her feel bad, but... she didn't really...

...

She didn't feel the same way about her.

Kokuma seemed to notice her uneasiness and shook her head. "I'm sorry" she said. "I didn't want to freak you out, I just.. needed to tell you"

Before Supana could stop her, her friend turned around and walked away, leaving her alone with the storm inside of her head.

 **Warning! Mature content:** pantyshots

? POV

She was at home. Alone, at last. After a long day of stalking and learning everything she considered useful in case she ever needed it, she was tired. She took off her shoes as she entered and dragged her bag with her up the stairs to her bedroom.

She fell onto her bed, exhausted. It was merely 4 PM, so she wasn't hungry yet. She had more time to spare than she usually did. What was she going to do...?

Oh, right! She just remembered she had to text Info-chan about a particular teacher from her school. She took out her phone and typed: _'Info-chan, do you know anything strange about Kaho Kanon?'_

 _'Text me a pantyshot and I might tell you'_ she gritted her teeth. The greedy brat! She was constantly demanding favors from her. Maybe it was because she made no effort to hide that she was desperate. Maybe it was because she never said 'no' to whatever Info-chan demanded in exchange for information. And her favors helped her a lot with both Osana and Kokona. Amai wasn't as much of a challenge. She was easy to convince.

It was disgusting, but she needed information about the teacher as fast as possible to plan her next move. Without much hesitation, she sat on her bed and spread her legs for a perfect pantyshot. She then shoved her phone under her skirt and finished the job. _Easy_. She sent the photo to Info-chan.

The other girl took her time. It was obvious she was playing with her, letting her wonder if she accepted the shot or not. After a long silence from her ally, she texted her again: ' _What are you waiting for?'_ she could tell the bitch was smiling.

 _'I thought it was obvious. I already have a picture of these panties. If you want this information, text me a picture with different ones... or if you don't care, you can send a picture without them'_

The murderer growled. Was this girl serious? Of course she would do it, but it was still unfair. Having to always do what Info-chan told her to. She got up and took off her panties. She took a picture again. It wasn't the first time she did this for Info-chan, but it was always as humiliating. She had no idea who was this person, but she was sending her all thos pictures... No. It was for her Senpai, so it was worth it in the end. At least sending her this shot would finally hut her up. There was nothing more she could demand from her.

 _'What? How long do I have to wait?'_ she asked some time after sending her the photo.

 _'Oh, I was just wondering if this was enough...'_ this girl really had a lot of courage to toy with her like that. Anyone else would be dead by that...

 _'Info-chan, you little...!'_ she started typing, but before she could finish, she saw a ner messege.

 _'Kaho Kanon was Kokona Haruka's teacher. She knew what Kokona was going through, and she's trying to find proof that she was murdered. She already suspects you, but she doesn't have any real clues._

 _Thanks for the shot, by the way'_

The grey-eyed girl scoffed at the last comment. Of course Info-chan would keep bringing that up just to humiliate her even further. She always suspected Kaho Kanon! She was just too... nosy. She kept watching her and giving her weird looks whenever she walked past her. And she was Kokona's teacher. Senpai's teacher. She was dangerous. Once she'd see her suspicious behaviour, she would be dragged straight to the headmaster... and then to the police. She couldn't let Kaho live.

 _'How can I eliminate her? I'm not strong enough'_ she asked Info-chan. She must'd had the answer, she always had.

 _'Luckily, I've already predicted you'd want to kill her'._ Really?! She knew Info-chan was smart, but how did she predict it? Did she have a plan already? _'Listen closely'_

Info-chan then went on to describe the following plan – tomorrow, at lunchtime, the doors to the classrooms would be locked, trapping the teachers inside, including Kaho Kanon. By the end of lunchtime she would have been provided a katana, one of the only few weapons in the school she was never skilled enough to aquire. She could open the door to class numer 3-2 with the help of the katana and kill the teacher there. With a weapon like this, and her superior reflexes, Kaho wouldn't stand a chance against her swift attack. She liked this plan. It was complex, yes, but it was a lot better than trying to simply stab Kaho with a knife. The teachers were constantly either together in the faculty room or in their classes with all of their students as witnesses. This plan, however, put the teachers in a very vulnerable position, and she was given a katana to finish it off. What could go wrong?

 _'There's one last thing'_ Info-chan texted her. What could it be? Was it another favor she wanted from her? _'Make sure to leave a note in Sakyu Basu's locker, asking her to meet you on the rooftop at 4 PM and bring Inkyu Basu with her'_

What? Now Info-chan was being cryptic. She felt like the whole point of the plan was hidden from her. What was going on? Info-chan was keeping secrets from her, maybe she wanted to frame her for something she wouldn't do? No. She needed her for the favors. She was only being... herself. Mysterious and manipulative. And she had no reason to worry. Tomorrow, she would eliminate Kaho Kanon and gain a katana.

She went to sleep, and had dreams of her senpai and her together at last.

Info-chan was almost done for today, except she sent one last text to Shin Higaku:

 _'Everything is prepared for tomorrow. Good luck'_


	18. In the shadows

**Tuesday, Lunchtime**

Shin's POV

Before the class ended, he kept rethinking the whole plan. It was insane, yes, but it was the only thing that could work. He stopped in the back of the school early in the morning to get spare keys to the classrooms from Info-chan. He had no idea how she was capable of obtaining all those items, but it didn't seem difficult for her. Now he only had to wait for all the students to leave the third floor so nobody could see him, and lock the teachers there.

The bell finally rang, and he didn't have time to hesitate now. If he didn't hurry, the plan would fail. He quickly got out of his classroom and started searching for the keys in his bag as casually as possible. None of the students stopped to look at him, none of them noticed him as they rushed to their usual spots to hang out with their friends. No witnesses so far. Good.

He looked around one more time before taking a few steps towards the door and taking cover behind a wall before his teacher could turn around and see him. He slammed the door shut and quickly locked it, using the key labelled: "Class 3-1". He ran straight to the other classroom on the floor, class 3-2. He repeated the process, and once again, nobody had any idea who he was. The plan was proceeding smoothly. He hurried downstairs, and waited for some of the last students to leave their classrooms. This floor, however, had an obstacle – the cafeteria, where most of the students ate lunch together. Seeing no other choice than to be even more careful, he closed the door not making a single sound and locked it. He slipped the key back into his back and blended with the crowd of students going to the cafeteria before he could be seen standing next to the classroom. He then passed class 2-1, relived that the teacher was still there. He turned left and waited for all the students to reach the cafeteria.

As he stood by the wall, studying the passing figures, he felt strangely... calm. He was one hundred percent focused on the task ahead, so he couldn't afford to get distracted with the possible consequences of his actions. But he couldn't deny that continuing to hide around the corner and watching the students pass him made him anxious. Every time somebody looked at him, he felt like they knew what he was about to do. Like they were going to tell everyone what he did later. He had to focus. It was good to be cautious, but he couldn't be parnoid about everything. After all, if he acted like he had every right to do what he was doing and go where he was going, he would raise less suspicions.

He took a deep breath and closed the door. This course of action was begging to become familiar to him, and every time he exited his hiding spot, closed the door and locked another teacher, it was easier and faster than the last one. And a lot more quiet.

He was already done with two floors – only one more remained. The first floor wasn't as crowded as the second one, so it was easy to lock both doors before being noticed by anyone. He hid in a small hallway behind one of the classrooms to plan his next move. He also needed some time to steady himself. He heard his phone vibrate in his bag. He looked at it to see a text from Info-chan.

 _"Nice work. I knew you had potential"_ she said. 'Potential'? What did she mean? Would she want him to do more favors for her like this one after he was done?

 _'What do I do now?'_ he asked her.

 _'I think starting a fire on the third floor isn't necessary anymore'._ Thank God. This was the part of the plan he was the least confident about. _'The teachers will soon notice they are stuck, and will call for help. With no other faculty members to fix this, the headmaster will have to leave his office. And I know he won't close the door behind him. He never does'_

The rest of the plan seemed even more risky than what he did already. But he felt ready for the challenge ahead. Some weird energy was filling him at that moment, urging him to continue. Even though some part of him was afraid, he silenced it until there was no doubt inside of him. He ran up the stairs to the third floor.

? POV

A black haired second year student sneaked towards the lockers. She knew which one was Sakyu's – thankfullly they were all labelled with numbers, and she knew the number of every student at school. She wandered around the lockers until she found what she needed – locker number seventeen, with a purple and gold heart sticker on it. She took out a pink piece of paper and started writing:

 _'Please meet me at the rooftop at 4 PM and bring Inkyu with you. I have something important to disscuss with you. Don't be late._

 _\- Your friend_

 _Yan-chan"_

She examined the note and considered it convincing. There was nothing in it that would give away her true intentions. She stuck the note onto the locker's door and left. She had other business to take care of. And she hoped her katana wouldn't be late.

Shin's POV

As he reached the third floor, he saw the headmaster peek out of his office and looking around the hallway. He couldn't see him here!

 _'Quick! HIDE!'_ was all he could think as her threw himself behind the wall and fell quite painfully to the floor. But at least he was safe. And it was all that mattered. He heard the headmaster's footsteps going towards him. He managed to get up from the floor and hide in the bathroom. He leaned on the nearest wall to be able to hear the headmaster walking. His breath was shaky. He expected the principal's head to appear in the bathroom any moment.

But... the man turned around and walked back towards his office.

He had just enough courage to look outside the bathroom for a moment before retreating. The headmaster was gone. He really thought he lost. But the dumb teacher didn't even consider that he could he hiding! He stepped outside and looked out into the hallway. The headmaster was knocking on the door of his classroom. He heard his teacher say something in response, and the two adults started talking about what just happened. Now was his chance. Without much hesitation, he used this opprotunity to sneak past class 3-2 without the headmaster seeing him.

He reached the office and stepped in. He was never here before, so the layout of the room was completely new to him. He saw a huge desk before him. A perfect hiding spot.

He rushed to the desk and sat under it. To a person standing in the hallway right now, it would look like no-one was inside the room. It was both an advantage, and a problem. The headmaster could come back anytime now and lock the room, leaving him with no escape routes, but if he came back, there was a small chance he could manage to stay hidden. It was a risky hiding spot, but the best one he had right now. He looked around the room and found a katana – it wasn't hard. It was locked in a fancy-looking glass case. He could, of course, try to break the case, but it would present many problems. For example, it would be obvious someone broke into the office and stole the katana, plus it would certainly take him some time to break the case, and it would produce much noise, which would attract the headmaster's attention. So now he had to find the key to the case. But how-?

 _'Where do I find the key to this case?"_ he texted Info-chan, praying she knew the exact location.

 _'I have no idea. None of my clients ever reached the headmaster's office unnoticed. Even I've tried, but it was harder than I expected'_

What? He was the first student to be able to explore the office? If he had more time, he would look into the student's files to see if he could find anything important. But right now, the clock was ticking, and the headmaster could return any moment.

 _'I can't help you here. You're on your own"_ Info-chan texted him. Well, she'd already done a lot for this 'mission'. He might as well look for the key without her help.

He stood up and tried not to panic. He was in a very vulnerable state. If the headmaster walked in at that moment, the mission would fail. He had to find the key. NOW.

He tried to open a drawer under the headmaster's desk, but it didn't move. This must'd been where the key was hidden. He looked at it closer, and found a keypad. _'Oh, seriously?!'_ he thought as he got up and started to look for clues.

He'd gone through most of of the drawers already, finding nothing of interest, when he heard a voice.

"Excuse me" the headmaster said to the teacher he was talking to through the door. Shin heard footsteps. Closer, and closer, until they stopped. The headmaster must'd been looking through the open door of his office. He couldn't see him as he hid under his desk just in time.

He tried to steady his breath to avoid being heard. It was crazy! He was going to get caught and severely punished, maybe even expelled. He wanted to stop his hands from shaking, but he couldn't. The headmaster just stood there. Maybe he saw him a long while ago, but he was waiting for him to reveal himself..?

And then... the headmaster walked away. He didn't even enter the office. Shin, still unsure of his luck, peeked out from under the desk. There was nobody there. Than again, there was the possibility that he did notice him, and was going to get help, but... it was very unlikely.

He stood up and wondered for a bit if closing the door was going to help him, or not. He wouldn't be noticed so easily, but the headmaster wasn't blind – if the door would be closed next time he walks by his office, that would only make him wonder if someone snuck into his office when he wasn't looking. And that would raise suspicions, and he surely didn't want that.

Wanting to get this over with as soon as possible, he started looking for clues again. The first drawer he opened revealed something interesting...

 _'How to hentai without hentaing – by Senpai"_ was the title of the book hidden inside. He didn't really want to know what was in the book itself, but since it was the first signifiacnt possible clue he found in the office, he decided to look inside. On the first page was a handwritten text, most likely written by the author of the book. They thanked the headmaster for supporting their work, and below it was a mysterious string of numbers.

The numbers looked strangely out of place, so he decided to try them out on the keypad. It worked. The drawer opened, revealing a key. It was black with a few red details on it, so it suited the case perfectly. Satisfied, Shin opened the case and took the katana out of it. It was larger than he thought it would be. He ran his finger over the blade to see if it was sharp enough. It was. How did the headmaster of their school obtain such a weapon? Did he buy it somewhere? Did he get it as a gift from a very rich parent of one of the students? He had no idea. But right now, he couldn't afford to think about this. The katana was his at last, and he needed to get out of the office before he was noticed by anyone.


	19. An unexpected ally

**Tuesday, before school**

Shin's POV

He was hiding behind a wall on the third floor, with the katana laying on the ground next to him. He turned his phone on to check for any new messeges from Info-chan. He had three.

 _'That was close. Good one'_

 _'What is that book?'_

 _'There's one more part of the plan I wasn't telling you about'_ the last messege seemed important, so he waited for more details. They came soon afterwards.

 _'You have to leave the katana in the girls' bathroom on the third floor'_ what? Why did he have to do this? Was someone going to take it? Was this all part of a plan to frame him for something he hadn't done? _'Don't ask me why, it's part of the deal with our ally. You're not the only one who will benefit from this scheme'_

Now he was conflicted. If this 'ally' used the katana to kill someone today, he would be partially responsible. Then it occured to him. What if their ally was the killer? If so, if she murdered someone today, it would give them more clues about her identity. It was for the greater good, after all. With a few more moments of hesitation, he quickly entered the girls' bathroom and hid the katana in one of the stalls. Then he walked out of the bathroom, satisfied in a way. He got away with locking the teachers in their classrooms, which allowed him access to the principal's office. Now, the katana was quite well hidden and he wasn't suspicious in any way.

 _'What's the next step, Info-chan?'_ he asked the mastermind.

 _'Hang on...'_ she texted him and he waited for a while.

 _'According to my notes,after placing the katana in the bathroom, you don't play any role in the plan until after classes. So I suggest doing whatever you consider the least suspicious, and then returning to your class, after the doors are unlocked. The headmaster's already working on it'_

It was reassuring, knowing that Info-chan had it all planned out so presicely. He trusted her just enough to go to class and don't ask her any more questions. But... he was curious. What was going to happen now? He went back to the bathroom and hid inside one of the stalls. He anxiously awaited the next events.

? ? ? POV

She was growing impatient. What if Info-chan lied to her about the whole plan? What if she used her and her katana was still locked in tight in the headmaster's office..? She took out her cellphone and started typing furiously, when she saw a new messege. It read:

 _"Your katana is hidden in the girls' bathroom next to class 3-2. Hurry up if you want to make it before the end of lunchtime"_

She did as she was told. She ascended the stairs and went inside the bathroom. She opened one of the stalls to check for the katana. It was empty. She walked past it and threw the next door open. Nothing in there, either. Was she being toyed with by Info-chan?

Finally, she opened the third stall and founf what she was looking for. The katana was placed neatly in the corner. She picked it up and examined it for a while. It was a bit heavier than she thought it would be. She swung it in her hands for a bit to familiarize herself with the new weapon. It wasn't damaged in any way. Whoever stole it from the case it was locked in must'd been quite clever. As she stood in the bathroom, waving the katana and looking at it move and reflect the dim light of the room, something occured to her. How did the katana end up in this bathroom? Who stole it? It couldn't had been Info-chan, she told her many times that she wasn't capable of breaking into the office. So... was it one of her clients? Why would they do such a risky thing? Did it have anything to do with the note she was told to leave on Sakyu Basu's locker..? She felt like she was part of something bigger, something that would affect many people and benefit not only her.

 _What was going on?_

She didn't have time to waste. She had to carry on with her mission. She was sure she was going to find out extacly what happened sooner or later, but she had to hurry up if she wanted her mission to succeed. All she cared about right now was eliminating this techer... and a perfect weapon just so happened to be hidden right next to her classroom.

When she was about to finally leave the bathroom, she stopped. What if the headmaster saw her carrying a katana around? She only had one chance. She had to pay attention to every little detail. If any of the teachers saw her doing something suspicious, it would be over. She would be expelled and heartbroken, and maybe even arrested. There were no second chances for her. One mistake, and everything she'd worked on for the past four weeks would be for nothing.

She carefully peeked out into the hallway. There was nobody there, so she moved on and reached her target – class 3-2. The door was locked, but it wasn't a problem for her anymore. She raised her weapon above her head and crushed the lock completely with one, devestating blow. The door flew open from the impact, and she entered, carrying the katana in front of her in a defensive manner.

 **Warning! Mature content:** slight gore

Kaho Kanon was inside. She turned ot face her immidiately when she heard the lock break.

"What do you think you're doing?" the teacher asked her, and she took a step forward, completely devoid of fear, perfectly confident. The teacher took a step back and pointed at the weapon with her hand. "Put that down immidiately-!" The schoolgirl didn't stop walking, cornering Kaho. The teacher's expression changed from demanding and angry to afraid. This was her favourite part. The moment her victims realised it was the end.

"I said..!" Kaho managed to say, her arm still raised to point at the katana. It was really remarkable, how she continued to oppose her, even though there was clearly no way she was leaving this classroom alive. The girl spun with her weapon dancing in the air around her to strenthen the blow that followed. The blade cut without any problems through the teacher's flesh, like it was cutting through the air a blink of an eye ago.

The woman looked in terror at where her arm used to be. She started to scream in agony, and fell to her knees before the murderer. It was... troublesome. The screams could attract unwanted attention. The girl quickly finished her off with a smooth cut through the heart. Kaho Kanon fell onto the floor, lifeless. She heard footsteps. Someone must'd heard the teacher's screams and was going to approach the classroom to see what just happened. It was a huge inconvienience for her. She had to make a choice – she could just run away and leave the corpse behind. The police wouldn't link her to the murder, but it would raise suspicions. So far, her crimes were all considered "accidents". And she wanted it to stay that way. But... if she chose to eliminate the witness, she would have two corpses to deal with, and could attract even more unwanted attention. She had to choose – leave an obvious crime scene behind her, or have to deal with two unlikely "disappearances"...

Wait...what if she could provide the police the proof they needed and frame the person who witnessed the corpse..? She could make it look like a murder-suicide...

She thanked her ability to think on her feet for making the whole plan in just a few seconds, when the witness reached the classroom.

It was...

 _...Midori Gurin?_

She didn't expect the green-haired underclassman to show up at the crime scene.

"Yan-chan! Yan-chan!" Midori exclaimed when she saw the corpse. "Did you just kill Kanon-sensei?"

The girl rolled her eyes. At least it wasn't someone who could threaten her mission in any way. Midori was... a strange girl. She was always lost in her thoughts, or, more accurately, in her phone. She was constantly texting someone she called "Devpai", and refused to give anyone more information about him. When she _did_ talk to her classmates, she was so annoying nobody reall wanted to spend time with her. Even some of the nicest students at school were absolutely done with her.

But the weirdest thing about Midori was that she always knew extacly what the yandere was doing. She was scared at first that the first-year might tell someone, but over the course of those four weeks, she kept everything to herself. She was never surprised to hear that she killed someone, or that someone "went missing".

"Yes, Midori" she answered, trying to remaiin calm. She procceeded to grab the teacher by her ankle and drag her outside the room. Midori followed her. She tried not to look at her in order to not provoke her to keep talking. They kept walking in silence, the black haired girl slowly dragging the teacher by her ankle, and the green haired one following her with a slightly unsettling smile.

"Yan-chan! Yan-chan! What are going to-?" she had enough of this girl. She looked at her with her most deadly stare, but the first-year seemed completely uneffected.

"Midori" she finally let go of the teacher's ankle and straitened up, looking at the other girl. "Can you do me a favor and get me a mop and a bucket?"

The girl nodded excitedly. "Sure thing Yan-chan! Just wait here!" she turned and ran... somewhere... the girl wasn't sure where, but she knew she would do as she was told. Disobeying Midori's request, she continued to drag the teacher to the bathroom, where she checked her wounds and saw that the blood was slowly stopping to spill out of them. Good. When she was done mopping the blood, she would slowly and carefully drag the teacher to the incinerator. But... lunchtime was almost over. So she just needed to hide the corpse in the bathroom when she was done cleaning up. She was hoping it wouldn't take Midori too long to bring her the tools she needed.

The green haired underclassman came sooner than she thought, carrying just what she needed. She was rather helpful, when she wasn't talking. She managed to befriend her some time ago, and so far she'd been quite valuable. And surprinsingly loyal. It made her wonder... why? Could Midori actually... like... her...? She had to ask Info-chan about it sometime. She was a bit scared to do so, though...

After cleaning the blood she dismissed Midori who returned to her classroom obiediently. Meanwhile, the young serial killer went to her classroom like nothing odd happened.

When she was almost inside, she got a new text from Info-chan.

 _"Hey. Stop right there and listen for once"_

She froze. What did this girl want from her now...?

 _"What is it?"_

 _"I need you to leave the katana on the rooftop. Somewhere where nobody hangs out"_ what? It was her weapon, she finally had it after such a long wait and now she had to give it up...?

 _"No"_ she could tell Info-chan really needed the katana to be left on the rooftop, but she didn't trust her a single bit. She wouldn't get rid of her biggest advantage now.

 _"Why are you being so difficult?"_ Info-chan texted her. She smirked. She loved it when things were turning out just the way she wanted. If Info-chan had some weird plan that involved her losing the katana, she wanted no part of it. She'd already used Info-chan for her plan. She didn't care.

 _"You won't get any more favors from me if you don't give the katana up. And if you do, you'll find it hidden away just for you tomorrow morning"_

Now that was a deal. She hated the thought of possibly losing her favourite weapon so far, but she had to. Info-chan's favors were too valuable to lose for a katana.

 _"Fine"_ she texted back and went upstairs to leave the katana in a corner of the rooftop, where nobody usually even looked.

 _"Are you happy?"_ she asked her provider sarcastically, but she got a response.

 _"Very much so. Now go back to your classroom and don't you dare go to the rooftop today again if you want to live. And have your katana back"_


	20. New feelings

**Lunchtime, Tuesday**

Oka's POV

Today was quite uneventful for her so far. After everything that happened sincce last Monday, it was atrange returning to her usual routine – going to her club and classroom, no drama, nothing interesting, really.

It was all because she found the courage to stand up to Taro yesterday. She felt like last week had changed her a lot. If she found herself in a situation like the one on yesterday's lunchtime a week ago, she wouldn't resist at all. She would just stand there, frozen, completely at Taro's mercy. Maybe it was because she survived a demon's attack and lived to tell about it. And maybe because spending more and more time with Taro made her more confident. It wasn't such a big deal anymore if he simply looked at her, or said something nice. And she was becoming more and more comfortable around him, she knew him better every time they spoke, so maybe that was why she decided to stand up to him yesterday. It was still strange to think about. Her disobeying someone she had feelings for...?

As she sat on her spot in the center of the room, one think seemed odd and unusual – Shin's abscense. He never missed club meetings. And even if he did, he always had some sort of a good excuse. And now...? He was just... gone. She hadn't seen him at all that day. She recalled the darkness she felt last time they performed the ritual. Could it be about him? What did it mean? Was he going to get hurt? Killed?

What...? Why was she scared about something happening to him? He'd been nothing but mean to her the whole week. And yet... the events of last Thursday still lingered in her mind. If he just acted like he usually did, cold and arrogant, she would'd simply given up on him by now. And she would never forget what happened last Monday, on the stairs... he was so different then. Like he wasn't himself, but someone else. If it wasn't for these two recent events, she wouldn't even bother thinking about him right now.

The empty space where he usually was felt... wrong. But he must'd been at school today. And he never missed school for no reason... so why wasn't he with them? What was so important that he decided to skip a club meeting? And why did she even care-? She couldn't decide which of these questions she wanted answered more.

'The answer is obvious' she told herself. Of course she cared about why he didn't show up because he made such a big deal out of her missing one or two meetings! And just like that, suddenly, her hatred towards him was flooding back at full force. She never realised she disliked him that much, because she always kept hatred hidden so deep inside her, even she had no idea how powerful it was. Until now. She remembered all those times when she was trying to talk to him, and he never listened, those times where he got really angry at her when she hadn't done anything wrong. She remembered how he never cared about anyone but himself. Yes. He was an awful person. And she hated him so much...

But she knew she was lying when she told herself she hated him. She didn't. It was just easier for her to think about it that way, than to think that she actually might'd...

.. _felt._... something for him.

What?! No! She did not say that! She wished she could forget a thought like this one ever even occurred to her, she wanted to curse whatever evil spirit possessed her in that moment to make her even consider it. What was she even thinking? She knew nobody would hear her thoughts, but she didn't even want to consider the possibility of loving someone besides... Taro... her sweet, caring Taro, who did so much good to her. And that was how she was paying him back? By thinking about someone else? Did she think Taro wasn't good enough for her? If she wanted someone else, she should just leave Taro alone and let him be with somebody he actually deserves. She was just... just a filthy s-...

She tried to calm herself, as she was at the verge of tears. She didn't want to cry in front of her classmates... even if Shin wasn't one of them right now.

'Stop it _. You acted on impulse, and it will never happen again'_ and at that extact moment, she promised herself to never again think about him that way. Ever.

Taro's POV

He was sitting on the fountain in the middle of the plaza, eating lunch by himself. He hadn't seen Oka since yeserday, besides the times he spotted her in his class. But the moment the bell rang, he left his class, not looking back at his classmates who gave him weird looks.

He remembered what she told him yesterday. It was clear she didn't want to be disturbed by him, at least for now. So he waited patinetly and full of anticipation for the next time she would want to talk to him. And he respected her decision to be alone. Maybe he _did_ push too hard. He was very surprised by the way she reacted yesterday. He was sure she would listen to him, and spend time with him. There was something odd going on in this club. And he didn't want her to take part in their "activities". But she actually said "no" to him for the first time. He decided to treat it as a lesson to never expect a girl to do whatever he wants and obey his every word.

Over the past week or so he'd grown really fond of her, and there was no denying that. They spent a lot of time together, and got to know eachother quite well. He even called her last Saturday to chat. The truth was, he didn't care what they were talking about or doing. He loved every moment he got to spend with her.

He only realised this once she was gone. She left him, and he now knew just how much he missed her. Her beautyful, dark eyes that always seemed to glare right into his soul, her sweet, but soft voice, even her messy hair that framed her perfect face in just the right way. He missed how her warm skin felt under his touch... the way she shivered every time he came closer to her.

He wanted to stop thinking about her, but he couldn't get her out of his mind, even when they weren't together. It wasn't like with Amai or Kokona... even Osana. He didn't feel anything for those girls. Sure, he liked them as friends and enjoyed spending time with them, but Oka... she was like a completely different category on her own. It was something much deeper, much faster, overwhelming and yet so fragile... He couldn't find any words he could describe it with... except for love.

 **After school, Tuesday**

Oka's POV

Classtime was over, and she still hadn't seen Shin. Taro, on the other hand, ran off the moment the teacher dismissed them. She wasn't sure if he was respecting her decision to take a break or mad at her because she ran away from him. She hoped it was the first one... even if she disobeyed him once she still didn't want to make him angry with her. No matter why he avoided her, she missed him. A lot. She still loved him, and repeated it in her mind whenever she doubted it. She really cared about him and wanted to spend time with him. Still... what happened yesterday was just too much for her. She wanted to be with him, but she had the right to choose what she wanted. She remember how he almost kissed her on Monday. Was he... teasing her? Showing her what she was missing when she didn't obey him? No, that wasn't it. Their seperation gave her too much time to rethink everything, and know she was having second thoughts about Taro..? The most precious person for her in the entire school, the one who patiently listened to her talking about her problems, the one who always cared so much more than anyone else...

She really thought there was something wrong with her when those thoughts occurred to her. Why did she have to ruin everything she'd worked so hard on? She really had to stop second guessing her relationship with Taro. He meant well and he was doing everything he could to make her happy. She had to remember than. No matter what was going on with her.

When she reaced the Occult Club room, it was empty. Curious...

She let out a groan of pain as her knees weakened under her and she fell onto the floor. _No, please no... not again!_ She desperately thought as she tried to breathe. Her hair was covering most of her face, she was half-kneeling, half-laying on the cold, purple tiles. What was going to happen to her now? She wished sombody was there to help her. Anyone, she didn't care at that moment.

Then she lost all her consciousness and saw only darkness.

Shin's POV

After the bell rang, he dashed out of his classroom and took one last look at Oka as she left hers. It was all for her. Nobody would hurt her anymore after today.

He didn't have time to waste, so he gone upstairs and found a katana there. As he picked it up, he remembered the last person who held it in their hands.

 _His patience rewarded him once again. A moment after he hid himself in one of the stalls, he heard fast-paced footsteps outside, and then coming into the bathroom. He was smar enough to not peek outside, as it would most likely result in him being spotted by whoever was standing merely two meters away from him, completely oblivious to his presense. At least, that's what he was hoping. He heard footsteps and saw a pair of feet. It was a girl. Just like he suspected, it was the murderer. He could just jump out at her and hope the element of surprise would be enough to defeat her, but he would be a fool to attempt such a thing. She'd killed at least two people already, so the chances were that she might'd been phisically stronger than him. He would rather not push his luck. So he observed what the girl did next._

 _She slammed one of the stall doors open, most likely looking for the katana. He knew where it was, and he hid it well, but maybe it would be the death of him. What if the girl opened his stall in search for the weapon and found him instead? Nothing good could come out of such a situation. So he waited, desperately trying not to breathe as to not cause the killer to suspect someone else was in the bathroom. Finally, she found the weapon and started waving it in her hands to test it out. He could tell she was satisfied with her newest advantage._

 _She froze for a moment. What was she doing? Did she hear him? Was she preapring to attack him, but was toying with him to make him reveal himself? He wouldn't let panic take over. He never let his emotions take control of his actions. And this was a crucial test._

 _He didn't move an inch._

 _Soon, the girl left the bathroom and he followed her outside when he knew she was... preoccupied... in class 3-2. He would stop to watch the bloodshed, just out of sick curiosity, but he didn't want the girl to notice him. So instead, he walked the long way around the third floor, passing the clubrooms, and waited, hidden close to his classroom. He hoped the murderer wouldn't find him there._

He shivered a bit when he remembered his encounter with their "ally". It was a savage beast, not a human. He considered himself somehow more human than her. But then again... would he be willing to kill Taro to get rid of the competition? No, he wasn't like that. He was going to kill the Basu sisters and watch them suffer because of what they did to Oka... and it wasn't only once. They bullied her for such a long time. And it was time for them to pay for what they did.


	21. Blood is spilled

**Tuesday, after school**

Shin's POV

He waited patiently for the Basu sisters to show up on the rooftop. Once again, it crossed his mind that Info-chan was lying to him this whole time, and it was all a complex plan that was going to get him killed. Or worse... he quickly dismissed these thoughts. It wasn't the time for self-doubt. Info-chan was a reliable ally, and the deal they've made was good. He leaned against the wall and waited.

It was 4:05 PM when he saw Sakyu, with Inkyu a few steps after her, emerge from the south-east staircase. He gripped his katana tighter and started walking towards them. Strategically, it was more beneficial to target Inkyu first, since it would take Sakyu longer to notice that something was wrong. The other reason he wanted to kill the younger sister first was that she deserved a quicker end. It was Sakyu he wanted to suffer the most.

 **Warning!** Mature content: bloodshed!

He walked up to Inkyu from the behind and before he even realized what he was doing, he was driving the katana deeper into the girl's back. He pierced her spine with a quick blow and he continued to deepen the wound until he saw the tip of the blade appear before her eyes. Inkyu didn't scream, but he heard her whimper when the edge of the hilt touched her back. It seemed almost too natural for him, like he'd done this many times before... what was wrong with him?

The moment he felt her blood on his hands, the whole world seemed to freeze around him. His eyes went wide when he realized... that he'd just killed her. It didn't matter if she was innocent or not to him at that moment – he spilled her blood. It was everywhere... on his hands, on the weapon... even his face. It was hot, almost burning against his skin. What had he done-? He was no better than the murderer herself... why was he even doing this? _He WAS a murderer now._ All of it because of one or two sick pranks... _no._ They deserved it. And he was doing the right thing. He wouldn't let them bully Oka anymore. He was protecting her from them. He had to be strong, and do something nobody managed to do... but he knew Oka's well-being came before his pathetic feelings. It wasn't important how he felt about killing the Basu sisters, _it was right_. He tightened his grip on the hilt even more.

His fingers brushed against her back for a moment, but he took a step back the moment he felt the warm fabric of her uniform. He katana slid out of her back, damaging even more of her flesh and resulting in a weak moan from the girl. He just stood there, frozen, incapable of moving a single muscle as he watched Inkyu's body fall to the floor, the pool of blood underneath her growing bigger and darker every second.

"Wha-?" Sakyu must'd heard her sister's lifeless body fall to the floor. The older girl turned around to see him standing over her most beloved's corpse. He strenthened his hold on the blood-soaked katana. She couldn't hurt him. Her end would be muchslower and more painful than her sister's.

"You-you killed my little sister!" she pointed towards him. Her face showed no fear. Only pure hatred and disgust. Her courage was admiriable, but this boldness only made him want to kill her more. He wouldn't hesitate this time. And he wouldn't show mercy. He was already a killer. One more person didn't matter to him at all. "You won't get away with this!"

Sakyu started to run towards him, and he took a few careful steps back. He was standing on the edge of the stairs. He watched in amusement as her emotions took over, completely preventing her from finding out what he was planning. Simply stabbing her would be... enjoyable, but way too simple.

Before she even realised what happened, he grabbed her by the wrist, just when she was close enough, and pushed her onto the stairs. It took all of his strenth, but it worked. He watched Sakyu fall down the stairs and hit the floor with a loud thud. He could swear he heard a crack of bones when she finally stopped, after bumping into the wall behind her.

He started to walk down the stairs, slowly, to finish her off. She didn't even try to run. She seemed to be hurt too badly to even stand. It would make everything so much easier for him.

She must'd heard his footsteps, as she held her knees closer to her chest in a protective manner. She seemed so tiny then, so innocent. But he knew she wasn't. Even the worst person could look vulnerable under some circumstances. She was breathing sharply, letting out uncontrolled sobs from time to time. Her whole body was shaking, either from fear, or crying. Whatever the reason, he didn't really care. When he stepped a bit closer, however, he heard her mutter something under her breath, desperate, but oh so weak.

 _"Don't hurt me..."_ he wasn't going to let her go. Not after everything she'd done. Her whisper only made him more anxious to end her.

As he reached the floor, and stopped next to her, her sobs stopped immidiately. For some time, nothing could be heard except from their breaths, sharp and uneven. Hers, because of the overwhelming pain and fear. His, because of his insanity.

Finally, after he was done staring at her and admiring his victory, he stepped even closer to her and pinned her to the wall with one of his hands, the other one still holding the weapon, ready to strike. She opened her bloodshot eyes, and looked at him for a while, trying her best to stay calm.

"Why-why are you doing this..?" she asked him at last. He once again had to admire her strenth throughtout all of this. Since he didn't want her to feel like her death was for no purpose, he was glad she asked him that. She should know why she had to die.

"You hurt Oka" and it was all that needed to be said. Sakyu stared at him in dibelief for a moment before her face changed from panic to anger. She looked him in the eye, with an amount of boldness that was surprising even for him.

"You-!" she spat out, but she didn't manage to finish whatever she was going to say. "All of you Occult Club freaks, you're sick! I always knew there was somethng wrong with you... It was just a stupid prank, alright? And you killed my sister!"

"I did it only to punish you for what you did" he drew the blade closer to the girl's stormach to shut her up at last. "Simply killing you wouldn't be enough" it was time to end this.

"You'll pay for this!" she yelled at him, desperately. He wouldn't. What he did was right. They hurt Oka, and now he was going to kill them. It was revenge. An eye for an eye. Hurt for hurt. It wasn't just revenge – it was justice.

He impaled Sakyu with the long blade and she screamed in pain. But it wasn't as painful for him as killing Inkyu. It was rather... enjoyable.

"How does it feel like?" he whispered to her as he came closer, almost touching her face with his. "To be hurt-?"

He pulled the katana back, slowly, relishing every twitch that rocked her body and every agonizing sound she made.

He looked at the gaping hole where her stormach used to be. It was bleeding, reddeing her uniform more and more with every second that passed while they were standing there, motionless, her – to afraid to move, him – too fascinated with the sight of the wound he made in her body.

But the wound wouldn't kill her – it would hurt, and make her pass out eventually, but it was too slow.

"What are you waiting for?" she panted, not fully able to speak from the pain and the blood loss. "Finish me off! Or are you scared to kill me now?" she was right. Killing Inkyu was short and didn't give him any time to hesitate. But with her... he could still spare her life if he wanted to... but it was ridiculous! She would tell everyone what he did, and all he'd done over the past week would be for nothing. _No. She had to die._ Right... now.

She wasn't begging for mercy anymore. She was toying with him. Even when she was about to die, it brought her pleasure to see him suffer. He wouldn't give her the satisfaction of seeing him hesitate. He raised the katana, slowly, and got ready to cut through her neck and then her heart. "DO IT" at that moment, something changed in her voice. It was deeper, more powerful... almost... out of this world. Was he imagining things? Was she haunting him already? Her scream made his hand shake as he cut through her, not killing her.

Then, something happened that he could not comprehand. Sakyu raised her hand and placed on her rapidly bleeding heart, with a chilling smile. Her whole arm was covered in blood when something changed. The ring on her left hand started to glow. She closed her eyes when they begunto shine an unnatural gold and let out a demonic laugh that made him take a step back in fear. She didn't sound like herself anymore. And she surely didn't seem dead.

She wasn't human anymore. And at that moment, she started to change into something else.

Oka's POV

 _Blood. So much blood... on the weapon that killed this girl, on the murderer's hands, on the floor... she saw Inkyu Basu fall to the ground. It was on the rooftop-!_

She gasped as she opened her eyes and regained her consciousness. She was lying on the floor in the Occult Club, in the middle of the room. Supana was sitting next to her, looking concerned and slightly terrified.

"Are you alright, Oka? What happened-?" she asked before Oka stood up and left the room in a hurry. Now was not the time to explain. Supana called after her, but it didn't stop her. It couldn't. She started running up the stairs. She still felt dizzy after being knocked out for a while, and she almost tripped a few times on the staircase.

What did this vision mean? Why was she given it? She knew it was urgent, it must'd already happened or was going to happen soon. If she couldn't do anything to stop it, there had to be something left on the rooftop that could lead her to the truth. And if the killer was still there, she would do anything to stop them. And maybe... now was her chance to learn the killer's identity.

She was almost there. Just a few more steps and she would know everything that happened on the rooftop...

Shin's POV

He took a step back when he realized what was standing before him. It was no longer Sakyu, and her transformation was almost complete. It didn't take him long to understand what he had just summoned.

She tilted her head back as two dark horns started growing on each side of her face and bit her lip at the feeling of bone piercing through the skin of her head, and spread her huge, dragon-like wings. She then straigtened up to look at him.

He was looking at... a succubus. And it was looking back at him as they stood there, frozen, waiting in silence.


	22. I want your love

**Tuesday, after school**

 **Warning! Mature content** : suggestive themes and partial nudity

Shin's POV

The creature before him was... fascinating. Even after looking at her for about ten seconds, he still couldn't believe it was real. It was an actual demon, and he'd never seen one in his whole life. He always believed they existed, of course, but seeing one standing right in front of him was completely diferent. It was undeniable proof that their research was based on facts, and not some stupid legends, like most people at school thought. His curiousity and amazement were too great for him to fear the succubus.

Her face barely showed any signs of age, but she could had been in her late twenties before she became a demon. Her bright, almond-shaped eyes were golden, more cat-like than human, her eyelashes were dark and thick, just like her eyebrows. Her long hair was flowing around her face as she floated a few centimeters above the ground, only slightly taller than him now. Black tattooes covered her whole body, twisting in patterns that created a complex web on her pale skin. She had a chocker on her neck with a pink crystal on it, a dark purple bra that was failing miserably to cover her rather enormous breasts, thin black panties, with matching dark gloves and stockings. The moment her eyes landed on him, he froze. She was beautyful, there was no denying that. She was a succubus after all, he reminded himself.

She smiled in pure enjoyment. He wasn't sure what she was going to do, now that she got a chance to be on earth once again. She tilted her head a bit, looking at him intensely. Was she trying to read his mind...? They'd practised defending themselves against mental attacks, but he wasn't sure how effective it was going to be in a real fight. Finally, she seemed to give up, and stretched like a cat that'd just woken up from a very long nap. Her wings spread when she did.

"Well..." she finally said, and her voice shifted to something beetween a purr and a low hum mid-sentence. She wasn't looking at him, too preoccupied with her stretching to be bothered by him. "You summoned me" she finished streching and looked at him again. "Since I'm feeling generous, I can answer a few questions. I'm sure you have lots of them"

She _did_ read his mind. Or she was just very observant. Either way, she was incredible. He had just been given a chance to ask a real succubus a question. If he lived until the next day, he wouldn't be able to wait to share her answers with his clubmates. He started wondering... what did he really want to know? There were so many things he could ask her, from her own life as a human, her transformation, to the demon realm and other demons. He hesitated for a bit, looking at her. She looked back, but she soon lost her focus and started looking around. She seemed absolutely comfortable in the situation she was in. Wasn't she afraid someone would see her? Then again, he suspected she had too much power to worry about those things. She was too powerful to worry about anything. He wondered... if he was a demon, he wouldn't let anyone hurt Oka. He could protect her... _No._ Now was not the time to think about the possibility of becoming a demon. Although... maybe it was... he was talking to a demon, after all...

Finally, a question came to his mind. One that was very important for him.

"Is Sakyu dead now?" he asked the succubus, and she turned her head towards him when she heard what he asked her. She blinked a few times, considering how to answer him.

"Momentarily, yes" she stated. What was that supposed to mean? She seemed to have a bit of a difficulty explaining Sakyu's current state. She looked around the room once again, gatherng her thoughts. "Well, not really... she's conscious, but her body is mine" he tried to wrap his head around what she just said. So Skayu wasn't really dead... Her mind was still here somewhere, maybe joined with the succubus', and her body transformed into the demon's phisical form. He's never heard of something like that before. Which could only mean one thing.

"It wasn't a regular summoning..." he started. She looked at him, focused. He was trying to come up with the most reasonable answer, and then it hit him – the similarities beetween the two, the way Sakyu turned, it all made sense now "You're bound to Sakyu, right?"

"My, my, such a clever young man..." she smiled at him, but this time it seemed more seductive in nature. Was he right? The demon let out a small giggle before continuing. "Yes, I am bound to her. She doesn't know it, but I have always lived inside her, waiting for someone to summon me at last~" He could tell she was happy to finally be free. He couldn't even imagine living inside another person and never being able to take control. "And you just set me free... I am grateful for that, you don't even know how borng it was for the past eighteen years... and two centuries bofore that..."

"What do you mean?" he asked her. "Have you possesed her ancestors, as well? Are you related to her?"

She couldn't stop smiling when she heard him.

"All the right answers, you are surprising me.. I didn't know people knew so much about us" she dropped down onto the floor to let her wings rest a little. She came closer to him, almost too close for comfort, and whispered "Now... ask me something you don't know the answer to~"

"How long are you going to stay here?"

"Oh, I' have just arrived. After two hundread years os slavery, I deserve some fun~" the answer was slightly unsettling for him. Was she never going to return to the demon world? Was she even capable of staying longer than until the sunset? "On that note, I am going to satisfy my hunger for the the next century or so... I think some of you could help me with that..." he was scared she might say that. And she did. Was she really going to feed on the students? He almost pitied them... but, maybe some of them wouldn't object...

"Any other questions?" she asked him, and he noticed her eyes change just a bit... they were brighter, almost burning with an inner golden flame. She was growing impatient, he could tell. He didn't want to make her angry, but he also wanted to ask her about something else...

"When you go back to the demon realm, will Sakyu come back to life..?" he took a step back, and she followed him. She was looking at him so intensely, he thought she didn't even hear him or didn't care to answer. He knew she didn't have time to mess around. But he had to delay her, even if just for a little bit.

Her face twitched at the question, her lips parting slightly and her eyes openeing even wider. She was trying so hard to regain her composure, but was failing miserably. She wanted energy. She'd never been this hungry before, and he wanted to stop her...? She was in no mood to play games. She was desperate for him, anyone, in fact, her whole body was shaking, refusing to listen to her mind. There was nothing else she wanted than to feed – and nothing else she could think about at that moment, as she stood before him, the last of her control keeping her from tearing him apart there and then. She was still partially human, even if after over two hundread years her humanity was slowly fading. It took all of her self-control to steady herself at last, and she stopped. Her skin was burning for touch, she was dizzy and drained, but she had to control herself this one time. He had no idea how much it hurt to remain stable.

"She-she" she barely spat out. She was truly at the brink of losing consciousness. She hadn't fed in ages, but she had to hold on for just a few more seconds. "She will" He looked at her closely. The fire in her eyes was burning again, even brighter now, and her whole body was shaking.

"But enough talking" she looked back at him, all humanity gone from her face. She was enraged. What had he done? She almost jumped at him and pushed him back. Even though she was shorter than him now, she was much stronger as she pinned him to the wall and closed the gap beetween them and capturing his lips in a rough but insanely passionate kiss.

At first, he didn't move at all. He had no idea what to do, or how to react. He was terrified of her, and the things she could do to him, but at the same time... he felt like he would enjoy them. She rested one of her hands on the wall to support herself while she moved against him with remarkable speed. She was sighing and moaning loudly as she gripped him by his shoulder to deepen the kiss. She almost managed to slip her tongue into his mouth when he realized she was using her powers on him the whole time to make him more willing. He didn't want her to kiss him. This had to stop. He gathered his strenth and pushed her away as forcefully as he could. She stumbled back a few steps, shocked, and he saw her pull her long tongue back into her mouth, licking her lips as she did.

She looked at him again, but this time she wasn't as desperate, or aggressive. She was smiling seductively at him as she came closer once again.

"What is it you don't like about me so much...?" she purred quietly, looking into his eyes as if trying to find out the answer. But his eyes were as cold as his heart, showing no sign of emotion. Her smile faded a bit when he didn't answer her question.

"It's not like you have to give me an answer willingly~" she said, and took a step back from him. "There are other ways I can learn everything I want from you... but they're not pleasant.." She purred and she looked at him intensely, as if she was trying to look through him. In fact, it was possible that she was. She bit her lip, he could see she didn't expect him to be so hard to break. He focused on trying to find her mentally, now that she was trying to break his defenses, he could find her easily. She was too focused on struggling with him to even notice he could feel her presense. Never before he had to fight with someone mentally, so he tried to push her away, lightly at first. She stopped and looked at him, her face showing pure shock as she realized he resisted her attack and managed to push her out of his mind.

She giggled. It was like a game to her. It wasn't really that important to her to find out more about this boy, but he... intrigued her. He seemed to know a lot about demons and magic for someone his age. And he proved to be quite strong, even if he didn't have any proper training in magic. He wouldn't give her what she wanted, so she would take it. As simple as that. She knew all of the ways to break his consentration... some of them more fun that the others, though~ She knew everything about men, and women, for that matter. She'd overcome every possible obstacle that stood beetween her and her preys already... nothing could surprise her anymore. And he wouldn't stop her. She was a demon with two hundread years of experience, after all.

She pushed again, this time prepared for him to defend. And he did. He fought back for a while, before she felt him slowly break. Just a few more seconds and she would see everything... but then he pushed her out almost completely. Was he trying to catch her off guard by stopping to defend himself for a moment to almost let her win? It was... extremely risky, but at the same time it was brilliant. He managed to amaze her once again. There was just something very special about him... she had no idea what.

She was at the brink of being pushed out again, when she decided she was tired of trying to overpower him in the usual way. She had a few tricks up her sleeves...

She jumped at him and crashed her lips onto his once again. His eyes widened when he was thrown onto the wall once again, giving her just enough time to slip past his defences. He was all hers now. Once she was inside, she couldn't be fought at all, even if he tried his best, because the moment she entered his mind, he couldn't do anything about it. She enjoyed having him at her mercy. Although it was usually easier to take over the minds of those who resisted her... once again, she began wondering why he was so powerful. She searched for the answer, and she found it – the club he was part of, they were all studying magic... it was strange to think about, that six students at this one school knew she existed and were learning how to fight back. His mind didn't fail her – it really was an interesting one. She looked at memories of past meetings with his club, and noticed a certain girl he seemed to pay more attention to than anything else. Intruiged, she dug deeped, and saw even more of this girl – her name was Oka. She heard her voice, saw her smile, then saw her cry... who was this girl, and why was she so important to him? It was almost an obsession... She smiled when she realized what it was. He loved her.

Memories of her human life started flooding back suddenly. That boy... he was her whole world, ever since she saw him for the first time, she was so young back then, so naive... but she didn't care for her mother's wisdom, or her friend's advice. They all told her it was pointless. But she couldn't lose him... she remembered meeting that girl... she should'd killed her then, but she was so stupid... Then she lost him forever. But she didn't give up, she never gave up. She sacrificed everything she had for the power to make him hers. She failed. He was dead, and so was she. There was no going back after that, she'd already made a choice. And she had to live with it for the next two centuries, slowly forgetting about him, but still craving him like she never craved anything before and nothing ever again.

She digs even deeper into his mind, fascinated by her discovery. She wonders why he wanted Sakyu Basu and her sister dead. It didn't take her long to find the answer – they hurt the girl he had feelings for. Sakyu chose the worst victim. She knew how it worked – doing anything to this girl meant he would come for revenge.

It all made sense to her now – how he managed to summon her. Every type of demon required a different ritual to summon. To wake her from her prison, one would have to spill someone else's blood in the name of love – in her case, it meant killing Sakyu Basu.

His love for this girl was real and there was no denying that, if he managed to summon her. But... he didn't really know _how_ to love. And this girl – Oka, didn't even know he felt something for her. It reminded her of herself... how she cared about him so much and he didn't even know her name.

She knew everything she wanted to know, but she didn't retreat just yet – she liked having control over him. The moment she would leave his mind, he'd push her away. She wanted to have some fun and feed while she could.

Her tongue danced in his mouth as she wandered through his memories for a while. She wasn't in a hurry, and she was enjoying it, so why should she stop? She laid her hand on the back of his head, burying her fingers in his short, curly hair. If only he could kiss her back willingly... She envied the girl he would give everything she ever wanted~ She knew he would do it for the girl she saw in his mind. She could only dream of someone being that devoted to her. And she had to admit, he definately wasn't bad when it came to looks, either.

She didn't want to let him go yet, but she felt like she had to. She knew most people would enjoy being kissed by her, but not him. Love was indeed a powerful force – it made people capable of things one wouldn't even think they could do, strenthened their will, made them... pure. Like a tear. No matter what happened, they still loved. And he would never love anyone but Oka. Just like she told herself she wouldn't feel for anyone else than _him_... but she was starting to doubt herself now...

She had to take energy from someone, but... she didn't really want it to be him... No, she would do what she had to do in order to survive. If she had to feed on him, she wouldn't hesitate. She wouldn't let her feelings kill her again. But she wasn't as hungry as she was before – she could think clearly again, and she had the power to stop herself before her instincts took over. She could take it slow. She broke the kiss and looked into his eyes. His ice cold eyes that only burned for this one girl. Oh, how she wanted those eyes to burn for her – she wanted him to give her what she always wanted and could never gain, despite all the power that she was given – love.

She hesitated for a while, standing her and looking at him being unable to push her away. She knew the moment she gave him his free will back, he would hate her again... she didn't want him to. But it had to be that way. She slowly pulled away from him and retreated from his mind.

She could tell he was in control once again. He looked directly at her, and tried to push her away, but she grabbed his hand, refusing to let go.

He felt her out of his mind at last. She kissed him – and there was nothing he could do to fight back. He felt so weak compared to her – it was the first time he felt like this – vulnerable and afraid. She could shamelessly stick her tongue into his mouth, and he had to just stand there and let her do it. It was disgusting, and even disturbing for him. He would never let someone do this to him willingly. But she forced him to stay still while she did whatever she wanted to him. It wasn't something he would allow. So when she pulled away from him and gave him his free will back, it was only reasonable to push her away from him. Surely she could feed on anyone else at this school – why him?

He saw the desperation in her eyes that wasn't lust. What did she want from him-? She caught him by the wrist when he tried pushing her away. He didn't expect her to do that. He felt... scared again. What was she going to do now? He could try running away, but it wasn't an option anymore now that she stopped him.

She pinned his hand to the wall behind him and took a step closer. He tried to struggle, to free his hand from her grip, but she was a lot stronger than him. She seemed determined to get what she wanted, one way or another.

"Listen" she said. He could tell she was being serious now. "You can stop struggling and it will be easier for both of us. But if you keep doing this..." she grabbed his second hand and pinned it to the wall as well, completely preventing him from moving."I will have to do it the hard way. I don't care what you choose, but you should. Do you understand?"

She looked at him closely, looking for any sort of a response from him. But he was silent, looking at her the way that told her he wanted so badly to kill her. But he couldn't, so he could only struggle. She had to admire his resistance, though – most people would'd given up by now. He kept struggling, but her hold on his wrists wasn't weakening at all.

She leaned in to kiss him again, but stopped. With a single move of her wings, she was on top of him, her legs wrapped around him. She let go of his hands, but he felt some powerful force keep him in place. She did it again. He couldn't move. He couldn't resist her.

She rested her hands on his shoulders, and shifted her legs a bit. She looked down at him and tilted her head slightly, wondering what she wanted to do to him next.

She bent down a bit to place a soft kiss on his neck. She spread her wings to keep her balance when she did. In the corner of her eye, she saw him bite his lip ever so slightly when she touched his skin with her soft lips. So he was capable of enjoying it. He was just trying not to. How impressive. She'd never seen anyone deny themselves pleasure like he was right now. She became determined to break his will. It wouldn't be easy, but it would definately be worth it. She straightened up and rested her elbows on his shoulders so her breasts were right before his eyes. She wondered what his reaction would be. She knew that the bra she was wearing wasn't covering anything from the angle he was looking at her. It would only take a quick look to realize it. But he turned his head away from her, completely ignoring her. She could hear his heavy breath. It must'd been hard for him, resisting her for so long. She didn't move an inch and waited, interested to see if he would ever look at her. He didn't. She placed her hand on his neck and forced him to. She wanted his head on her breasts. She wanted him to touch her, to kiss all over her skin. She leaned in even closer, his face almost touched her bra. If she didn't want to do what she wanted him to, she would take it herself.

She grabbed the back of his head to force him to touch her where she wanted him to. Almost there... she reached for the back of her bra and started to unhook it, when she heard someone approaching. She turned her head towards the sound of footsteps.

She forced him to look at her exposed breasts underneath her bra. He didn't want to, he really didn't. But the way she kissed him earlier... made her almost irresistable. He tried not to focus on what he was seeing, and not to think of what she would soon do to him, but he couldn't. So when she started pushing him even closer to her, he gave up, preparing for the worst. He knew he couldn't overpower her. There was no way he was getting out of here before she got what she wanted.

It was at that moment when he heard footsteps approaching from behind him. He tried to turn his head to see the person who was on the rooftop, but the succubus' grip wasn't weakening. She must'd turned her head towards the sound, he couldn't see anything, but he felt her neck move. Who was approaching them? And why weren't they scared?

The footsteps stopped right next to him. He froze. Was this person going to save him? Or hurt him? He had no idea, he could only wait for some kind of a reaction from the succubus, or the stranger standing next to him.


	23. Sisters

**Tuesday, after school**

 **Warning! Mature content:** suggestive themes and partial nudity

Shin's POV

"Sister..?" he heard a weak, feminine voice coming from next to him. Who was this? Were they talking to the Succubus...? _Inkyu._ Inkyu must'd transformed as well. One succubus versus a human was not a fair fight, but two..? Now he really was in trouble...

The second he heard the voice, he felt the Succubus' weight disappear when the demon appeared next to him. How was she capable of moving so fast? He turned his head to look at the two beings standing so close to him, but he realized he wasn't capable of running away. It felt like the succubus was still pinning him to the wall with her magic. Curse that woman-! Even when she seemed to be in a hurry, she didn't forget to restrain him properly.

The first thing he saw was the second demon's hair. It was pink, falling onto her shoulders in graceful waves that were just long enough to cover her breasts – thank God. Her eyes were also shining, but were differrent than the succubus'. They were cyan, and their light was calm and bright. Like her sister, the creature had black tattoes, but her wings were smaller and more bat-like in appearance. Her long horns curled on both sides of her delicate face. Half-transperent, light pink fabric was covering her hips and legs, though it parted in the middle, the only thing actually covering her skin were black panties, similiat to her sister's. There was an obvious height gap beetween the two demons, the younger one being more child-like in appearance. The moment her eyes found his, he couldn't stop staring at her. She was... amazing.

What was it about her that fascinated him so much? Her clothing, her looks, the way her face resembled Oka's ever so slightly...? No. He knew what it was. It was the way she looked so nervous, almost terrified compared to the other demon, so fragile. He knew she could probably kill him with ease if she wanted to, but it wasn't about phisical strenth. There was something about her that made her so much more appealing to him than her sister. Then it hit him. She was an Incubus. Of course she was! Their names made so much more sense now! The incubus looked at him briefly, but then turned to face the other demon. She seemed more lost and confused than dangerous. But he still kept his eyes on her, not knowing what to expect.

"..what happened...?" her voice was still merely a whisper, it was clear she hadn't fed in a long time, either. Would she try to take advantage of him like the Succubus did? He was afraid he didn't have the strenth to fight back anymore... But her voice was so weak, so afraid.. maybe she wouldn't do anything harmful... then he realized it could had been her magic trying to convince him to give up. He would try to resist them for as long as he could, but in the end, they could still become in control easily and force him to do anything they wanted him to. He looked at the two demons and couldn't hide fear that must'd been visible in his eyes.

The young Incubus looked as if she was going to pass out any minute now. Her sister slid her arms onto her back to support her. She looked at the succubus, grateful. "Are we alive again, sister..?" she managed to ask.

The Succubus smiled at her, and this time it was in pure joy. "Only until tommorow" the older woman looked at him briefly, and said: "I reccomend you use this time well~"

The Incubus looked puzzled, and asked the other demon something Shin couldn't really hear. The older girl leaned closer to her sister and whispered the answer in her ear. What were they talking about? The Incubus' face lit up in understanding, and she turned to take a closer look at him. _Oh._ At least he knew what the exchange was about.

The pink-haired demon was looking at him with an almost concerned expression. What was she thinking about? Did she not want to feed on him? Then he remembered. Incubi needed permission from the human they wanted to feed on or a Succubus.

"What are you waiting for?" the Succubus asked her. She was growing impatient. She released her sister from her hold, and the younger girl amost fell to the ground.

"What if... " she asked her sister, standing beetween him and the Succubus. "what if he won't let us feed? If he doesn't want to, then maybe..."

"Stop it" her sister silenced her, and the Incubus obeyed without a word. "Don't you understand? We don't have time to be picky. If we try to look for someone who actually wants us, we would loose half the time we have" the succubus' reasoning made sense to him. Too bad he ended up as their victim.

"There are... other people here that..." she stuttered, but shut up under her sister's glare. It was cold and demanding, it was clear to him that when a Succubus wanted something – she was going to get it.

The girl was still barely standing on her own as she took a small step to approach him. He noticed the way she cupped her hands together, trying to prevent them from twitching rapidly. She was now barely a meter away from him, and it was clear she was barely holding back. She felt almost... sorry for her. All the torment she must'd been going through, and she still didn't want to give in.

She stepped even closer. Her eyes were on him the next moment, staring at him with desperation. She could barely breathe at that point, her whole body shaking, her eyes filled with hunger, as she bit her lower lip, almost drawing blood.

That boy... there was something about him that made her want him even more than other humans. She stood before him, trembling, trying her best to stop herself before she did something to harm him. But there was nothing else she wanted than to fulfill her need. It was overwhelming, urging her to relieve it, but she couldn't.

It was the curse of being an Incubus, or a Succubus, for that matter – when they were away from humans, they could live for a long time without feeding. But the moment they returned to the human world, even if just for a day, two centuries of endless torture and hunger came back to them, taunting them until they satisfied their lust. And it was getting worse the closer they were to someone who could give them energy. At that moment, she was trying to breathe, but she couldn't. She stood there, frozen in place, looking at him. One move and he could give her everything she wanted. Curse her demonhood, curse her pathetic life! She didn't want to live like this, she wanted to be happy with someone who would love her, truly and deeply like she could love them. She was told she was given great power, but it was a curse. Nothing more.

She looked at him, pleading, begging him to end her suffering and let her do what she didn't want, but at the same time craved so much. He looked at the Succubus, not sure of what he should do. She was standing a few meters away from him, looking at the whole scene. The moment their gazes met, she let him go.

His first instinct was to run away, hoping they would forget about him and find someone else, but... the Incubus was so desperate for him, she would most likely die if someone didn't feed her soon. He already let one person die, and demon or not – he didn't want this girl to suffer. What was this feeling? He didn't love her, he could only love Oka. The thought of loving an Incubus disgusted him and yet... maybe not all of them were horrible and constantly filled with lust. This girl... she seemed harmless, even kind. He wanted to help her. He couldn't leave her to suffer when it was so easy for him to give her what she wanted.

He noticed the Succubus staring at him, examining his every move, but he didn't care. He steeped closer to the Incubus. She was so much shorter than him. She looked up at him, hoping he would relieve her, but not making a move to force him to do it.

"p-please..." she breathed. He looked back at her, seeing just how much he needed him. He didn't want to help her because she was desperate, however – her sister was, too. She had such control over her instincts, she didn't want to do anything to hurt him or force him to do anything, and she would rather die than try to force herself on him. Her compassion was truly something worth admiring, and maybe he would learn from her someday.

He didn't want her to suffer anymore, so he pulled her closer to embrace her. Her eyes went wide, she really didn't expect him to do it. Hesitantly, she laid her small, deliacte hands on his back and rested her head on his shoulder. He felt her small wings tremble under his touch when his fingers brushed against their base on her back. She smiled at him.

She hadn't been so happy in ages... Her heart was racing as she slowly gained more and more energy and her hunger stopped for a mere moment. But she wasn't going to get enough if she didn't take a step further. He wanted to help her, and it didn't seem to be for any perverted reasons or to take advantage of her – it was a purely compassionate gesture, one she appreciated deeply. She never thought someone would want to relieve her from the pain without wanting something in return. And he really wasn't asking for anything from her – he was giving her what she wanted, despite being in the position that made it possible for him to toy with her or tease her. But he didn't. He treated her with respect, which was rare, given that she was a demon of lust and her rather submissive nature.

He noticed the Incubus shift slightly. She looked up at him in embarrasment, but took a deep breath and said:

"I... I need... more.." she was blushing the lightest shade of pink when those words left her mouth. _Oh._ She wasn't as weak as before, but she was still far from satisfied. One kiss couldn't hurt – if it was all he had to do to help her, he would do it. He kept reminding himself that she needed it and he was merely ending her suffering, even if it was for a short while. It seemed only right to do something good for her after nearly killing two people... but... didn't he kill _her_? This girl before him was a part of Inkyu. He might as well had killed her – it didn't really make a difference.

 _'What if she wasn't real..?'_ the thought stroke him as terrifying. But it could'd been true. What if he was alone this whole time, standing over the corpses of his dead victims, imagining all of this in a pathetic attempt to cope with the guilt? The demons... they were too incredible to be real... and he had already gone insane. Closing his eyes for a moment, he thought to himself: ' _this isn't real... so what really matters anymore?'_ he could no longer feel the Incubus in his arms, her soft skin under his fingers... it was all gone. Could it be..? He was hallucinating this whole time?

But when he opened his eyes again, he saw the Incubus staring back at him. He must'd been crazier than he thought. Well, if he was insane anyway, it didn't really matter what he did now. He literally couldn't care less.

He moved one of his hands to place it on the back of the Icubus' head, right next to one of her horns, and close the gap beetween them, capturing her lips in a soft, tender kiss. She let go of him and stood motionless, slowly begging to kiss him back. She was still trembling, maybe now more from pleasure and anticipation than hunger, and the sounds she was making told him how much she was enjoying it. But the longer he was kissing her, the more she desired him. It wasn't enough. She wasn't satisfied yet.

Her eyes began to glow a crimson color suddenly, and she pulled away from him. She was panting heavily, not fully in control anymore. She tried to stop her self, but she couldn't. She was strong enough to use her powers, and desperate enough to need them. He took a step back, realising something was wrong, but before he could run, she dashed towards him and he fell down. So did she.

The second he hit the hard ground he felt the Incubus' weight on top of him.

She gave up trying to stop herself long ago – it was impossible. Once she lost what little control she had left, she wouldn't be able to stop until she was full. She pitied whoever would turn out to be her victim.

Her eyes were still glowing, her hair was a mess when she kissed him again. But this time it was rough and forceful, like with the Succubus. Her legs were wrapped around him, preventing him from escaping her grasp. He tried to push her away, but she gripped his hands tightly, stopping him. Instead, she moved his hands onto her lower back, making sure they stayed there. She pulled away, resting her elbows on the floor next to him, and looked at him closely. Her face showed no emotion, and her stare was blank when she leaned down to whisper to him.

"Go ahead" her voice send shivers down his spine as she moved one of her hands to his wrist, slowly dragging his hand down her back, until it reached her panties. "I'm all yours~"

"Enough, sister" the Succubus' voice interrupted the Incubus. The younger demon turned her head towards her in disppointment.

"But-" the Succubus' cold expression was enough to make her sister give up.

"Stop it and listen to me" the Incubus stood up, hesitantly, and he got up as well. "We are not alone"

Both of the demons focused their attention on something on the other end of the rooftop. He couldn't see it, as a wall was blocking his view. Did someone come here to investigate? What if they were going to be the next victim? And who was it-?

The Succubus smiled widely when she realised who was on the rooftop with them. How dramatic this was turning out... the person standing in the doorway was none other than the girl she saw in Shin's mind – Oka Ruto.

The Succubus turned her head to look at him again. Her expression told him something bad was going to happen soon.

"Well, well... look who's here with us, sister~" the Incubus looked more closely and realised who it was. "This is going to be much more fun..."


	24. The act

**Tuesday, after school**

 **Warning! Mature content:** suggestive themes and partial nudity

Shin's POV

He took a step towards the two demons, but the Succubus stopped him. She turned her head to him in clear amusement. Who were they looking at?

"Look" she grabbed his hand and pulled him closer, then pointed towards the far end of the rooftop, where he saw... Oka.

Why was she here? Was it just a cruel coincidence that she decided to come here? He cursed her curious nature that surely led her here – or maybe she heard the sounds coming from the rooftop? Did she already see him? He hoped she didn't.

"Isn't this perfect, sister?" the Succubus purred. Her sister was clearly still shaken after what happened with him. He could tell she still wasn't 'herself'. Her eyes flashed an even brighter shade of gold when she licked her lips in anticipation. He wanted to kill them again, and again, and again... until they'd learn to never even come close to Oka. He wouldn't let them do anything to her. She'd been through so much already... and he knew the demons wouldn't hold back anymore. He wanted to warn her somehow, but he was too far away, and the Succubus' grip on him wasn't weakening at all. Oka was on her own. Against two hungry demons of lust. He didn't want to know what would happen once they got to her... but he could still slow them down.

"Go" the purple-haired demon said to her sister. Within a seconds, she appeared before Oka. She didn't have to be told twice, after all.

The Succubus spread her wings to fly away, as well, but he stopped her.

"Don't hurt her-" it was all he could manage to say. It was all that mattered to him at that moment. He didn't care about anything else, his life, everyone else – it all seemed insignificant when the Succubus turned to listen to what he had to say.

The demon chuckled in amusent. It didn't mean anything good, he knew. She moved to stand behind him and placed her hands on his shoulders, looking at Oka and the Incubus with him. He felt her breath on the back of his neck when she came closer and whispered to him:

"Do you really think I'll listen?" her voice was haunting, and so was her touch. He knew he was only making it worse by asking her not to hurt Oka, but he had to. "After you disobeyed me for such a long time? I've given you so many chances, but you were too stubborn to think" it wasn't true. How could he had known that Oka would appear so suddenly? He was doing what he thought was right at the moment. The Succubus was only trying to manipulate him. Break him. Make him suffer. She was already suceeding, so why did she have to make it worse? "If you let us do what we wanted from the start, it would be easier for everyone~"

Maybe she was right. But it was pointless to plead now. "Look at her now" he didn't want to look, but he did. "She knows how to obey" he wanted to rip her apart, this time for good. But he just stood there, paralyzed with fear. He wasn't going to give her the satisfaction of seeing him cry.

"Can you- can you feed on me instead?" he asked her. He knew it wouldn't work, but he was ready to sacrifice himself if it would help Oka. The Succubus threw her head back and laughed. Was it really such a strange thing to ask?

"I see you're starting to learn. Good" she stepped out from behind him and he could see her clearly. "Well, as much as I'd love to make you obey, it's too late for that"

"Maybe sometime later, though.. " he wasn't sure what she meant by that, but if she thought it meant that he wanted her now, she was mistaken. He didn't want anything to do with her. Expecially not... this way.

"For now... watch my sister tear her apart" he wanted to close his eyes, but for some reason he couldn't move at all. It was all too terrifying.

The Succubus turned to leave once again, this time for good, it seemed, but she looked at him one last time and said something he didn't expect to hear at all.

"Don't worry. I'll make sure you'll hear her scream when she breaks" his eye twitched at her words. What-?

"I've seen your mind" she said when she was about to leave. "Even the darkest parts"

And with that, she was gone.

Kokuma's POV

She entered the clubroom. Curiously, neither Shin nor Oka were present. The moment she stepped inside, she saw Supana looking away from her. She must'd been watching her before. _Oh._ Yesterday, she... confessed to her. She still couldn't get over it. She was thrilled to meet her at school today, after the intial shock was gone, but curiously enough, Supana seemed to avoid her throughout the whole day.

Kokuma tried not to think about it, but it was clear she didn't feel the same way about her. Now, she regretted telling her at all. They were best friends for such a long time, and now... it was all ruined, because she wanted more than just that. Most people would'd freaked out if they found out their friend had such a huge crush on them, especially after such a long friendship... oh god, what if Supana thought she only wanted to be her friend to get closer to her, and that she was disgusting and perverted..? That she wanted to use her in some way?

What should she do now? She didn't want to creep her out even further by approaching her and just talking to her about it. Maybe she just needed some time to process it? She could give her time, as long as Supana would confirm how she felt abot it sometime soon.

But she didn't want to wait anymore than she already had... she was trying to get rid of her feelings for a year now, she didn't want to suffocate them even more. She had to do _something_ about it. She couldn't stand not knowing Supana's answer. She opened up to her, risked everything just to tell her something nobody else knew about her, and now she wanted to pretend she didn't even know her? Now that was cruel. Damnit! Supana was her best friend, she had every right to talk to her about her feelings. Avoiding the topic only made it more awkward for both of them. So she decided to talk to her once they left the school.

Supana's POV

She still couldn't get over what happened yesterday, with Kokuma.. She had no idea how to feel about the whole thing.

It was ironic how she was constantly entertaining herself with other people's love lives, craving a romance of her own, looking for the perfect soulmate, while Kokuma... loved her... all along. But just because she had feelings for her didn't mean she loved her as well. Besides... Kokuma... was a girl... she wasn't sure how her parents would feel about it... she didn't know if she could accept it herself... It was such a strange choice to have to make. Kokuma was her friend, and she wanted her to be happy, but she couldn't forget about herself. Would she really be happy to be with her? And why was it so difficult to choose?

She hoped her ex-friend would give her some more time to think about this, without pushing her any further. The main question still remained – did she want them to be more than just friends? She would have to decide one day, it was only fair if she did, but if she was to be honest, she had to idea what she wanted.

Oka's POV

When she finally reached the rooftop, she saw someone appear before her. Was it the murderer?She looked up at the person in front of her, almost too scared to learn their identity. However, what she saw shocked her beyond words.

It was... anIncubus. A real demon! Even after all the things she'd seen throughout this week or so, it was clearly the most breath-taking one, as it was the first time she was standing face to face with a supernatural being. Not in a dream, not in a dream, not during a ritual. Real, phisical... almost close enough for her to touch it...

Her amazement quickly faded and turned into fear when she realised what she was up against. Incubi really weren't the friendliest sort of demons, especially when they were hungry. And this one seemed completely out of control. She didn't even have the time to wonder how it got here, she only wanted to escape.

At first, however, she was too shocked to leave. That is, until the demon started to walk towards her. Her fear prooved stronger than her curiousity and she ran. She ran like she never had before. Her hair was blocking most of her view, but it didn't matter as long as the Incubus was still behind her. She heard the fluttering of the creature's wings behind her. She wouldn't run for long...

She felt a strong hand reach out to her and grab the back of her shirt. She fell down, landing on her back, breathless, before the Incubus. She was too exhausted to even attempt to get up. She knew she didn't stand a chance against her. It was over now. There was nothing she could do but to obey her and hope she would let her go once she had what she came for.

She felt the demon grab her by the ankles. It wasn't what she expected to happen, but she didn't care anymore. She was being dragged upstairs back to where she was before she started running away. It was a slow turture. Her head was constantly hitting the steps below her, the demon's nails were digging into her skin. The Incubus didn't say a word to her. The way she was positioned made it impossible for her to actually see her, but her unnatural strenth was making her more and more afraid of what she was going to do to her soon. She close her eyes, giving up completely. If it was going to happen anyway, she wanted it to be over as quickly as possible. And she didn't want to see any of it. She would let this demon hurt her so deeply, do whatever she pleased to her, and hope she wouldn't be too agressive. There was no point trying to resist this... force of nature. It would only make her more angry and more violent afterwards.

They stopped on top of the stairs. This was it. Just like when she was about to be ripped apart by the demonic hands before, there was a moment of silent anticipation. She kept her eyes closed, not daring to peek at what the Incubus was planning, and took a deep breath, bracing herself for the pain she was about to go through.

The demon made her wait for her to do anything. Was it part of her plan? She didn't have much time to think, as soon she felt the Incubus' hands pin her wrists to the floor over her head. She risked opening her eyes to catch a glimpse of the creature crawling towards her. And what a terrifying sight that was – she was smiling, her eyes were shining in anticipation as she sank her weight onto her. Was it really going to happen like this? Here? Now? She wasn't even eighteen yet... She had a life to live, people to love... She wasn't ready for it, but she had no choice.

The Incubus was laying on top of her, resting her elbows on the floor next to her. What was she doing? She was hungry, right? Why was she waiting then-?

The demon girl was staring at her in a way that made her extremely uncomfortable,especially when her crimson eyes landed on her short skirt... she close her legs when they did, instinctively. She froze. Was she angering the demon? She shouldn;t have done that – she was only making it longer and more painful. To her surprise, the Incubus didn't seem to mind at all – she smiled in response, looking deep into her eyes. Then she bent down and kissed her suddenly.

Her eyes slammed shut when the girl's hot lips covered hers. She froze. Should she kiss her back? She had no idea why, but.. she felt like she wanted to.

The demon tightened her grip on her, placing her hand on the back of her neck to deepen the kiss. She sighed in pleasure – she just couldn't help it. She hesitantly started to return the kiss, seeing how impatient this demon was.

She felt the Incubus' tongue lick her lips lightly, showing her she wanted more. Her mouth slid open, allowing her access.

The demon wasn't planning on taking it slow at all – the moment her tongue was in her mouth it started penetrating her relentlessly, making her gasp loudly. She couldn't take it anymore – how could she even think of resisting when it was so good...? She threw her head back, giving herself to the Incubus completely and without hesitation, grabbing hold of her back for support. She was rewarded with a pleasured sign from the demon. She seemed to be enjoying herself. She never knew a kiss could bring her so much pleasure – then again, this was her first one, so she wasn't extacly... experienced. Already, she felt like she wouldn't take much more, and they hadn't even begun yet. If a kiss was making her feel like that, what would it be like to take a step further...?

She quickly dismissed those thoughts. She didn't have the right to enjoy it, this demon was forcefully taking advantage of her-! It wasn't supposed to be like this – she thought she would just close her eyes, feel a bit of pain, but get it over with a few moments later. Yet... she was going crazy already. She didn't expect to... react to the Incubus' actions at all. She wasn't really sure what she expected – not this, that was for sure. She couldn't think straight anymore – the demon was doing this to her. It was only partially true, however, she knew that she was the one enjoying it, and she should be blaming herself for her current situation.

She felt a hand on her lower back, gripping the edge of her shirt and making her arch her back at the sensation itself – her skin wasn't used to the Incubus' touch yet, expecially... there. To the Incubus, it must had looked as if she was desperately trying to hide her need for her – and she wasn't sure anymore if it was the truth or not. She didn't want it to be the truth, but... maybe it was. She didn't know anything anymore. Only that she craved the Incubus' touch. She didn't want to, there was still a part of her screaming in pain, crying that she was being hurt so deeply. But her body wasn't listening to her at all... She had no idea what she wanted anymore, and only the demon could make her certain.

Before the Incubus could start to undress her, however, she heard footsteps coming from the rooftop and they both froze.

"Not so fast, sister~" the voice belonged to a woman a bit older than the Incubus. "Not without me – I want to have fun, too..."

Before she could even see the owner of the voice or think about what she just said, she felt a strong hand grab her by the fabric of her shirt. The Incubus fell off her, as if she had been pulled away by some powerful force, but she didn't get to enjoy her momentarily freedom for long, as she was soon lifted into the air and a mere second later dropped down onto the floor two meters below her. She wanted to run, but she couldn't move a single muscle. The fall might'd broken a few of her bones... if she ever got out of here alive, she would have a lot of explaining to do. But the pain wasn't the worst part at all. The worst part was the world spinning before her eyes. She would be happy to pass out at that moment. She couldn't see anything, or breathe for a while. Slowly, she realised she was laying on her back on the floor of the landing below the stairs. The Incubus was sitting in front of her, looking up at something. She did the same and saw the creature that brought them both here – a Succubus. She was floating above them, dominant and majestic, shining with power. Her glare was ice cold as she examined her, slowly.

What was all of this fuss about? This girl wasn't even _that_ pretty... She had no idea why anyone would be so desperate for her affection, much less two different people. She wasn't bad, of course, but her hips were too narrow and her breasts too small, for her liking. Well, as long as she was willing, it didn't matter to her.

The Incubus looked up at the other demon."What are you- what are you waiting for?" she asked meekly. She looked different. Was it because her eyes were cyan now, and not crimson?

The purple-haired demon landed beetween her and the Incubus, gracefully.

"Please excuse my sister – she's not herself today" the Incubus was looking down at the floor, still and quiet. She noted the way the Succubus ignored her sister's question, clearly showing who's in charge. She looked at the demon before her – she could plead. She could say something, anything, but... it was pointless to beg for mercy now. But she could still ask them a question.

"Where did you two come from?" she asked. Why were they even here? Were they summoned? And what about Inkyu Basu? Was she dead? She hoped the Succubus would give her answers to at least some of those questions. After all, it wasn't normal for two demons to be walking around a school during the day.

"I think the asnwer to that question is closer than you think, dear~" the Succubus giggled. What was that supposed to mean? How were they connected to her vision of Inkyu?

"What-?" the demon bent down a bit and placed a finger on her lips, silencing her immidiately.

"Oh, trust me... you'll learn when the time is right" another mysterious answer. It was clear she wasn't getting any information out of her. "I'll tell you one thing, though – there is someone who can answer all of your questions for me" she added suddenly. Who was it? Was someone responsible for summoning them? By the way the demon worded it, she was guessing it was someone she knew. She was growing more and more suspicious about the demon's sudden appearence. Something bad was happening at this school – and it was being hidden from her on purpose, she felt it was. And her instinct never failed her.

"Now-" the Succubus spread her wings and grabbed her arm roughly. "As pleasant as it was to chat, you can't stop us from doing what we came here to do"

Before she knew it, her head hit the wall and she thought she was bleeding. She wasn't. She felt the Succubus' hand reach her throat and staying there, slowly choking her. She couldn't move at all. She was pinned against the wall, a meter above the ground. But the demon didn't touch her anywhere else. Instead, she turned to the Incubus, who was still sitting on the floor, waiting for her sister's permission to stand up.

"Feast" the mere whisper was all the Succubus said, and she realised how close their faces were. She could see the Incubus approaching slowly and flying towards her to face her. She tiled her head and looked her in the eye, as if she was trying to read her thoughts. Then, something happened that she didn't expect at all – the Incubus, instead of ttacking her, laid a hand on her cheek gently and leaned in to whisper to her softly.

"It won't hurt. I promise" she said, and her voice was different than before. She seemed fully in control of her actions this time, but she knew how it worked for the Incubi – they were absolutely harmless until they started feeding. When their instincts started to take over, there was nothing they could do about it. Even if she knew it would hurt – a lot, for that matter, she appreciated the Incubus' concern. Though, it was a very strange thing to say to someone who was pinned on the wall and barely breathing. "I wish there was another way, I'm sorry..." this Incubus somehow managed to be even more indesicive than her.

"Just do what you must and get it over with-" she breathed. As much as she appreciated the Incubus being so gentle with her, she really wanted this to end as fast as possible.

The Incubus nodded in understanding and lowered herself a bit. Her small hands trace her sides lightly, sliding over the curves of her hips and brushing ever so slightly against her breasts, making her whimper weakly. There was a moment of silence afterwards, followed by a loud gasp when she felt the Incubus reach under her skirt suddenly. The demon's hands retreated as quickly as they came, and soon she felt her touch on her legs. Then she moved on to her neck, kissing it softly. She lost track of time completely, and was almost unaware of what the demons were doing to her anymore – she close her eyes, feeling their touch everywhere on her skin, the Incubus' lips and sometimes the Succubus' teeth. She was being devoured whole, and she soon had no idea what was happening to her. The only thing she knew was that she was still fully dressed, but it didn't change the fact that the demons sometimes reached under her shirt or skirt. There wasn't a place they hadn't touched or kissed, even if it was a light, barely felt brush. Her sighs and moans soon became one, monotone sound that she wasn't even aware of making.

Suddenly, she felt something different. Pain. She opened her eyes wide enough to see what happened. She was on the stairs again, and the Succubus was laying on top of her. She felt her lips on hers again – she was used to it by then. She noted the Incubus' presence next to her, a bit lower on the stairs, watching her sister. Her eyes became red sometime earlier. She didn't care what they did to her anymore – she could barely think, in fact, she tried not to think at all. She had no idea how much time had passed since she arrived on the rooftop, and how long would it take them to finally finish it. She still had her clothes on, which was the only indication that they were far from done with her. As the Succubus was busy kissing her fiercely,the Incubus tore her skirt off suddenly and she felt the cool air on her underwear. She took a deep breath. This was it. Or at least she hoped so. She wanted this nightmare to finally end.

Shin's POV

He stayed there, he had no idea why. He wanted to run, to leave the school, leave this mess behind him – but he couldn't. He didn't want to look – but he couldn't tear his eyes away from her. All the torment she was going through, it was because of him. He killed two people, summoned demons, and now she was paying the price. It wasn't just... but if he let them feed on him instead, they wouldn't have to hurt Oka. Now, he was left without a choice, completely powerless against the supernatural beings that wanted nothing more than to hurt – why did she have to get in their way? He wished she would just stay in the club. Or, even better – if she stayed home today. No, she still wasn't safe, it would be best if she'd never come to school. If she never did anything, she wouldn't be hurt now. _She wouldn't have to be hurt if she was dead,_ he realised suddenly. Terrified of his own thoughts, he ran away from school to get as far away from the demons – he knew he wouldn't run away from who he was, but he could try. He wanted to leave everything that happened that day behind him – he didn't care if someone saw the blood of his victims, he didn't care anymore.

Oka's POV

She felt something... dark. A presence, far away, but not too far. Was someone watching them? It disappeared before she could see anything more.

Meanwhile, the demons were getting bolder and rougher. They were reaching for her panties more often and more demanding – but they didn't dare to tear them off her yet. Instead, they focused on her shirt. The Succubus grabbed it and pulled it off, slowly revealing more and more of her bare skin, until they could see her bra. Her uniform was tossed away carelessly – the demons had more important things to worry about now that she was left with only her underwear to cover the last bits of her skin. The Succubus licked her lips at the sight. She tilted her head back, not wanting to see what she was going to do to her soon.

The demon kissed her neck, and then started to go down, impatient, wanting to remove what little clothes she had left on her. Her kisses reached the edge of her bra before she even knew it. She licked her skin, slowly, relishing its taste. Her tongue slid under her bra suddenly, but didn't reach far. The Succubus merely smirked then and reached down her back to unhook her bra. When she felt her fingers on her spine, she paniced. Was this really happening? A sudden spark of rebellion appeared in her mind. _She wasn't going to let her do that to her! She couldn't - !_

In a flash of light, everything was gone. She didn't feel the demon on top of her anymore, nor her hands on her back. She was still laying on the stairs, still half-naked, but the demons were... gone. What... happened? Were they even there at all? Did she do something to them? What _did_ she do?

She opened her eyes. She saw the Succubus laying on the floor of the landing a few steps below her. Was she dead? Unconscious? She stood up, hesitantly, her legs were still shaking after everything the demons made her go through. She took a few steps towards the Succubus and knelt beside her on the floor, watching her closely. Was this some sort of trick? Maybe she was going to wake up and-

Her trail of throught was cut off when she saw the Succubus' horns disappear, her wings shrinking and going through her skin, leaving no trace behind themselves on her back. Her face shifted slightly, and she saw something she would have never expected to see. Laying before her was... Sakyu Basu. Unconscious, but clearly alive. She'd never seen a transformation like this one. Was Sakyu controlling the demon? Were they the same person? Did her classmate even know what happened moments ago, while she was the demon...? Oh god, she hoped she had no memory of it...

She stood up, suddenly realising that she was still in her underwear and that Sakyu, demon or not, couldn't wake up to see her like this. She gathered all of her clothes, checked if her bra was still where it was supposed to be, and put her clothes back on as soon as possible. She was about to leave the school, when she noticed Inkyu Basu laying on the floor of the rooftop, alive, just like her sister. She thanked whoever was responsible for this – she was alive, and her vision wasn't true. Nobody was killed today, and she wasn't even hurt that much. Despite everything she'd been through today, this was certainly the best outcome. She briefly considered going to the nurse and telling her about the Basu sisters, but it would raise a lot of questions she didn't have the strenth to answer. All she wanted was to go home and hope tomorrow would be normal.


	25. Nightmare

**Wednesday, night**

Oka's POV

 _At first, she could only see darkness. Neverending, eternal darkness. Where was she? She couldn't look around, or maybe she was but couldn't see the difference – everything was black after all._

 _But then a figure appeared in the distance, floating above the ground. It was a female with pale skin, long, dark hair and... horns... She was wearing a white, flowing dress that seemed almost ghostly in appearance. But when she turned her head to look at her, and some faint light was shed onto her face, she gasped in surprise. The person before her..._ was _her._

 _They weren't identical, however. The other her seemed a bit older than her, like a grown woman. She was beautyful... Her skin was white, and her hair amost black – she was devoid of color. Of life, she realised. What was being shown to her?_

 _She stepped back when a spark of light appeared above the woman's head, revealing a half-moon that floated above her. It was then that she noticed a black pentagram on her neck. This was not a person... it was something more. A goddess..._

 _She began to see dark silhouettes behind her, their faces covered by black, torn vails. They held flames in their hands, shining brightly, but they were still pitch black. What were they? Her attention returned to the woman before her. To herself, she corrected. No, this wasn't her. It couldn't be her. Was this a vision of her future? She didn't want to believe it, but something was telling her it was true..._

 _The woman spread her arms and opened the one eye that wasn't obscured by her hair. It was shining brightly, blinding her completely. She could feel her power. It was endless. If she wanted, she could destroy the whole world with a mere thought. It was a terrifying creature, but it was her. It was her destiny. Her true form. What she could acheive if she wanted. Her potential._

 _But she didn't want it to be her future. She wanted to stay where she was, she had a whole life ahead of her. She wanted to get old and die, like everyone else. And she wanted to do it with someone she loved. She didn't want this. Power, immortality, it was above her. She was only human, and she wanted it to stay this way._

 _This wasn't a goddess... it was a demon. A cursed soul who could never find peace._

 _No! It couldn't be like this! There had to be another way... she refused to live a life like this one-!_

She woke up screaming. She jumped out of her bed immidiately, wanting to open the window so she could get some fresh air after what she just saw. It was alright. She was alive, and everything was as it should be. She leaned outside, watching her neighbourhood. Everyone was still asleep. Everything around her was so peaceful and quiet, she could feel the cool air on her skin, the messy waves of her hair flowing around her face...She took a few deep breaths. Last time she had a nightmare like this one, it didn't come true. She didn't die a week ago. And she wasn't going to become a demon. Never.

But... strange things kept happening around her for a while now. She recalled the events of yesterday, expecially their end. How did she make the demons disappear...? One second, they were on her, then suddenly they were gone. She tried to remember exactly what happened...

 _She felt the Succubus begin to take her bra off and she panicked. At first, it was only fear, but then, something happened deep inside of her... fear... turned into rage. Before she knew it, a spark of resistance turned into a fire that quickly spread through her whole body. She felt... powerful. Just like she did when she could see everyone's auras a week ago. It was the same feeling of energy that felt unnatural, but was somehow always there, hidden, waiting for the right time to manifest. In a moment, all this power seemed to leave her body with incredible spped, so fast she didn't realise it until now, and then there was a flash of white light that blinded her for a split second, and she felt the Succubus flying into the air, the Incubus disappearing as well. When she opened her eyes, they were both already uncoscious and beginning to transform._

Recalling the events of yesterday made her remember so many new details she'd missed before – it all happened too fast for her to even think about it. She was almost certain now what made the demons disappear. It didn't come from them, but from her. There were two possibilites of how that could'd occured – either she was possessed, or there was some sort of power within her that she wasn't aware of having.

Being possessed could explain her visions, and all the events that suddenly started to happen to her over the course of the last two weeks... she remembered the first one, her nightmare on last Tuesday's night... Was she present at the club meeting on Tuesday, after school... she must'd been... Maybe something went wrong during the ritual and a demon was able to possess her... Then she remembered – it was the time she was late because of spending time with Taro and Shin was angry with her. Looking back at what was troubling her a week ago, it felt like an eternity. Now, her problems weren't just being late to club meetings... It was almost laughable now, what sorts of issues bothered her just a week ago. Has so much really happened that she'd changed like that? Well, her vision on Thursday, seeing the nurse's corpse on Friday, trying to research auras during the weekend, and her encounter with the demons yesterday was quite a lot for a week. Was it too much? Maybe she should stop worrying about school or relationships with her classmates, when her life was constantly being threatened by demons and other supernatural beings?

But if she was possessed, wouldn't there be some sort of signs? She'd read a lot about possession, and her state didn't look like an average one, at least. Maybe some sort of a supernatural creature was preparing to possess her? It could explain why she felt normal, but was getting all those visions and sudden powers...?

No, it didn't make sense anymore. The only explaination was that she somehow had the power to use magic. Was it possible? Maybe all the rituals she performed with her classmates had something to do with it? Or maybe she was born with the potential for magic...? She knew about some cases of humans gifted with supernatural powers, but it was really rare and required some further research just to be sure.

Either way, she still had no idea what was happening to her. She had to consult it with her clubmates, maybe even her parents... her father was out of question, he would never talk with her about those topics, but her mother could help her... If she was born with supernatural abilities, only her mother could confirm it.

She sighed and close the window. It was getting cold, so she went back to bed. She couldn't stop thinking about what happened to her, and she wasn't sure if she managed to fall asleep that night at all...

 **Morning, Wednesday**

She got up earlier than usual. Quicker than usual, she got dressed and went to the kitchen to get some breakfast. When she entered the room, however she saw her mother sitting by the table and drinking coffee. It was unusual for her to see her so early in the morning. Normally, she didn't see anyone in the mornings as she was going to school before most other students.

Slowly, she approached her mother. She was dressed already, but looked tired – she usually did. Despite her young age, her life wasn't the most pleasant. Giving birth to a child at the age of nineteen wasn't something most people were prepared for. Oka never knew much about her mother's past, as she wasn't really eager to talk about it. Overall, she was an extremely quiet and reserved person. Even if she was only thirty seven, she looked a lot older. Her short hair was a light shade of blue, a bit similiar to her own, expect she usually kept it tied up in a messy manner. She was short and rather skinny – her whole appearance seemed to suggest how much she'd been through. Only her dark purple eyes were still bright and full of life, just like hers.

"Hi" she only said, hoping to get her mother's attention. There were times where she wouldn't react to her at all, too deep in her own thoughts. Today, however, was different. The moment she heard Oka's voice, she turned to look at her. She seemed to be in a rather good mood for herself, actually.

"Good morning, Oka" she said. This definately wasn't one of those apathetic days during which she'd spend all of her free time alone, staring at something from the window, or just laying on her bed, lost in her own thoughts.

Once she made breakfast for herself, she joined her mom at the table.

"Why are you up so early?" Oka asked her, curious. Her mother frowned a bit and was quiet for a moment before she spoke.

"Something woke me up in the middle of the night..." she said. Was it her? Did her mother know about the nightmares? The woman looked at her, closely. "Are you alright, darling? You seem rather... scared" Her mother was always good at reading people, just like her. She wasn't wrong this time. The question was – should she tell her the truth?

"I had.. a nightmare today. Again" she said, curious of her mom's reaction. She almost dropped her cup when she heard what her daughter just said.

"What sort of a nightmare? What did you see?" she asked her. There was deep worry in her eyes when she said that. Did she believe in visions? She never really asked her about this topic, but whenever she mentioned something supernatural, her mother always changed the subject, so she assumed she considered it stupid, like her father did.

"Mom, was I always so... strange?" she asked her. If she was gifted since birth, her mother would know.

"What do you mean, dear? You're not strange" she said. She was always so nice and supportive to her.

"I know you don't like talking about it, but we really should... was there anything about me that... wasn't normal? I have to know, mom-"

Before she could finish her sentence, her mother put her cup away and leaned closer to her.

"Oka... there was nothing wrong with you as a child. It was never about you..." the end of the last sentence was muttered in a way she could barely make out the words. What did she mean? Maybe she really was possessed... If it wasn't about her, what was wrong?

"If you know something, please tell me. It's important" her mother was silent. She was growing irritated. She had to tell her what happened, otherwise she wouldn't believe her.

"I was attacked by a demon yesterday – two, in fact" she said, raising her voice a bit too much. She had to tell someone. It wasn't the right time or place, but all of her fear and anxiety were coming from the fact that she never told anyone about those things. She doubted her mother would believe her, but she had to tell someone. "They wanted to hurt me, mom. But I survived. I shouldn't have. I know you won't believe me, and you probably think I'm crazy, but-"

Her mother silenced her. She realised she was standing already, and her voice had turned into a yell. The woman before her was standing as well, and walked up to her slowly. What was she going to do?

"I believe you, Oka" she whispered and hugged her, suddenly. She froze for a moment, but hugged her back soon. All this time, her mother believed in the supernatural, but didn't tell her? Why? Was she hiding something from her..? "Please, don't do anything stupid. It's safer if you just let it go. I did"

What did she mean? Her mother was keeping secrets from her, secrets that could maybe save her life someday.

"Mom, I'm in danger, I know it. You have to tell me" she felt her mother tense up a bit. Was this too much for her? She didn't want to make her mother sad or angry.

She pulled away from her and said: "Please don't look for answers. It will get you killed – or worse. It's dangerous to experiment with magic, dear. I won't tell you anything else, but know this – there is something protecting you. You are not in danger as long as you don't try to learn more about it. So please, forget about it"

She walked away, leaving her completely frozen in shock. What... just happened? It was almost too much information at once. Her mother may have known more about magic than she had. Did she study the occult like her? She said magic was dangerous... maybe she had an accident while experimenting? Did she accidentally summon a demon...? It was a possibility...

There was something protecting her, as long as she didn't start looking for it... what was it? Was it some sort of a protective spell? Mysteriously enough, it seemed to be the truth – everytime she was in danger, she somehow managed to save herself. Maybe it wasn't her who defeated the demons, then... What was powerful enough to do that, though? She didn't know any spell that would be capable of protecting a human so effectively throughout their whole lifetime...

She told her to forget about it. How could she, though? She just heard proof that she was paranormal, how could she not research it? She decided to discuss it with her clubmates today, she wouldn't leave this mystery unsolved.


	26. On the inside

**Wednesday, before school**

Oka's POV

The moment she entered the school, something felt... wrong... She tripped, but managed not to fall by her locker. Maybe it was because of her lack of sleep..? She took a deep breath and tried to steady herself, slowly beginning to walk towards her clubroom.

There was a flash of light, and then darkness. She may had fallen down, she had no idea what was happening to her. Then everything was black and white, just like a week ago. Before she realized what was happening, everything was back to normal in a second. She was still standing as if nothing happened...

 _What was happening...?_ Did it have anything to do with her vision last night? Or with the demons? Maybe it was all somehow connected... She tried to think of a way this could all fit together, but her thoughts were interrupted again by another flash of light, followed by darkness, but then it went back to normal. Was her mind playing tricks on her? Or was someone intentionally trying to mess with her? She didn't know who was responsible, but it was working.

A few seconds later, she was struck by excruciating pain. It was... nowhere, but everywhere. It felt like her mind was being ripped apart, slowly, in two. She saw a dark figure, and everything around it was a black void. The creature looked at her, and held out its hand towards her. She reached out, but when she did, she saw the school corridor again, then the creature before her, and then she was back to normal.

Who was that? They seemed somehow... _significant_ to her. Like she _should_ recognize them. But she had no idea who they were.

Suddenly, she recalled the nightmare she had a week ago, and the voice she'd never heard before, but she should had...

 _'How could you leave me...?'_

* * *

When she finally got to the club and touched the door handle, her mind seemed to leave her body, and she was looking at herself from a distance. She could see the whole shool, every student in black or white... And she... she was transparent...

She didn't have an aura? How was that possible? She thought every human had one. _But... she wasn't sure if she was even a human anymore..._ Or maybe the auras really didn't rely on one's personality... maybe it was more about their potential for magic, or.. something else entirely.

Her eyes snapped open again, and she could feel the door under her fingers. She quickly pushed it open and took her place, sitting in the middle on one of the still empty chairs. She quickly glanced at Shin, but looked back to her book before he could see her staring at him. They were the first people to arrive in the clubroom, just like usually. She didn't remember seeing him on any of the club meetings yesterday... what was keeping him so busy? Now that she thought of it, she hadn't talked to him since last Friday.

 _The murderer._.. they were still somewhere at school... If she stayed in the club, she was safe. Then, a thought came to her mind: _'What if he's actually the killer..?'._ The first time she told him about it, he didn't even try to reason with her, didn't doubt a single word she said to him. It was... strange. She buried her face in her hands, trying to think. If he was really the murderer, she would be dead by now, wouldn't she? There were better places to kill her than the clubroom...

Besides, it was pointless to suspect everyone. Like he said, they just had to wait patiently for the killer to make a mistake. She was being paranoid.

Suddenly, she felt... dizzy... like she was going to faint any moment. She close her eyes and focused on the feeling. If it was of supernatural origin, she could controll it, right? She couldn't let some unknown power toy with her whenever it wanted to. She felt the source of the feeling... it wasn't anywhere in her body, it was her mind. Her consciousness. It felt like her eyes were suddenly opened. But they were the eyes of her soul.

 _Her mind was looking around the room, seeing everything around her in its own way. She lost all her senses, she was a bodyless spirit that could see everything, was nowhere but everywhere at the same time._

 _Her attention focused on Shin for a moment. He was a black void, a being so dark she could feel it. The darkness was sickening her, it felt like a cold wind flowing all around her, but it fascinated her as well. She reached out to it, trying to feel it. She felt herself becoming pulled closer to it, and she didn't resist the feeling._

 _Suddenly, something changed. The void. It saw her. He saw her. How was this possible? She thought he wasn't capable of feeling her presense like that. Then again, it was all new to her. But the fact that he spotted her before she even came close enough was... outstanding._

 _She tried to dig deeper, not really knowing what she was doing. But something stopped her._ What...? _He was pushing her away. Successfully. How could he have the strenth to fight back against her powers? Before she knew it, she was pushed back to her own body, and forced to stay there. She realized what would happen if she'd won the fight – she would read his mind. She would know absolutely everything she'd want to know about him. Finally, she would have the answers to all of her questions..._

 _But... maybe it was wrong... maybe she shouldn't do that to him. She was pretty sure he was aware of her powers by now, so if she decided to enter his mind, he would be enraged. She didn't want to find out how he would react._

 _She felt him push further, and she couldn't stop him. He could see her now. Everthing she was trying to hide from him this whole time... and she couldn't push him out now that he'd proven stronger._

 _She was trying to focus on him, wondering what he would want to know first. Much to her surprise, the first thing she saw was... Taro. All of their interactions, their talks, their bonding, it all flashed before her eyes again. Why would he want to know all of that? Did he want to know why she missed so many meetings. Or was it something else entirely..?_

 _Then she felt... love. Her love for Taro. She hadn't realized how great it was until now that he was feeling it, too._

 _Suddenly, something broke. She felt him lower his defenses just a little bit. What happened? She could faintly see how he felt at that moment. He was... devastated. What made him feel that way? Was it seeing her feeling for Taro? Was he... envious of them? No, it wasn't just that..._

 _Without fully realizing it, she dug deeper, and entered his mind with ease now that he was distracted. She was flooded with memories... She was lost, but soon found her spirit in his mind. She had no idea what she wanted to see, so she looked around to see... herself. First, their first meeting a year ago, when she'd learned she wasn't the only one interested in the occult, then her crying in the clubroom... she remembered that... it was after two of their initial clubmates left them... he saw her then? She was sure nobody was watching... she was almost too afraid to look further..._

 _Her and Taro talking on Monday and Tuesday... he was there, too? How did she not see him? Then she recalled catching a glimpse of him on Monday... he must'd been stalking her, then... She felt like she was in danger... Why would he want to follow her around the school...?_

 _Then, something that broke her heart. Taro hugging her, while she was crying on Wednesday... how did he see that? There was something... special about that memory... The moment she saw it, she felt him push her out, desperately. She tried to resist, and didn't let him make her go away. He was hiding too much from her. She had the right to know._

 _She stopped on the memory of her and Taro on Wednesday. Suddenly, his mind started to scream in pain when he felt her explore it again. Why was it so painful for him..? She focused on the memory again, and saw him... crying. He was really crying. She'd never seen him cry, and had no idea he was even capable of it. But the pain that was ripping his soul when she brought it back was genuine. And it was overwhelming._

 _She didn't want to feel it anymore. She retreated, and moved on. Another image of her. She was laying on the floor of the Occult Club room... wait... it was on Thursday. During her vision. He was the one that found her... if he ever wanted to hurt her, he would then. But he helped her. He took her to the nurse and left her there... he was afraid she would find out, but she did the same day after school..._

 _Then it became a blurr... Friday, the weekend, Monday..._

 _Tuesday... what happened on Tuesday...? She saw so many things at once, so many emotions... she couldn't understand any of it, it was too much at once. Shadows... corridors... students passing by... What was he doing..? Then... a sight she immidiately recognized, as it frightened her._

 _She and the two demons. Yesterday. He was there, as well. He'd seen them. He knew what happened... Was he... responsible for summoning them in some way...? She had to know..._

But the moment she began to search for answers, she was pushed out with the force that almost physically hurt. She was back to normal. She wasn't hurt or even tired. She was back in the clubroom, with the rest. She didn't even dare to look at Shin before she left and went to her classroom earlier.

 **Classtime**

She couldn't stop thinking about what she'd just learned. She couldn't concentrate in class at all. She had the ability to read minds! It was insane to think about, but she really couldn't deny it now. She had supernatural powers, and they seemed to show up completely randomly. She was thankful they did today – she'd learned so much. It was shocking to be able to see inside another person's mind, but Shin was... especially fascinating. He was always keeping secrets from her, but now even more than ever before. And she deserved to know the truth, didn't she?

One thing unsettled her, though... The memory of last Wednesday, when Taro hugged her... The pain it brought him. She'd never felt this way... What happened to him? Was it because he was angry with her for spending time with Taro? Or was it about her...?

 _Could he... feel something for her?_

She wasn't even trying to deny it now. As wrong as it sounded even in her own thoughts, it could'd been the truth. She had considered the possibility before, but she had no real proof then. Maybe... the asnwer was that simple. But it was never simple with him. Nothing concerning him was simple or normal, or right-!

 _He_ wasn't right!

No, she would never give in. She was happy with Taro... until they fought because of her club. Her damned club! It was the source of all her problems, and Shin was part of it. How could she even want to spend time with them? Who cares about the club, why was she even-!

 _'Stop it'_ she told herself. It wasn't right to blame the club for her mistakes. She had to speak to Taro after class and tell him that she was sorry. She really was. She wished she didn't have all of her responsibilities, but it wasn't just the club... it was the magic, the demons... they would never leave her. Her life would never be normal, even if she ran away from it with Taro. Because she could never escape her fate. And she could never be happy with Taro, away from her problems.

But she could at least _try_ to be happy. If she couldn't live a normal life, she could still try to. And she was going to try – _with Taro._


	27. Comfort

**Lunchtime, Wednesday**

Oka's POV

It was lunchtime... already? She was so lost in thought she didn't pay much attention to the teacher's lecture. She should had been more focused on school, despite everything.

She looked over at Taro... it was just like a week ago... except now it wasn't her own shyness stopping her – it was her fear of another fight. She remembered him telling her that she could still talk to him anytime she wanted to, but was it really true? She felt like she needed his comfort more than ever. He wouldn't ask her questions she couldn't answer. He would listen to her going on and on about her problems, her feelings, and would accept the amount of information she would tell him. She knew she could trust him to make her feel better. It was only a matter of one, brave move from her and then he would take care of the rest. She was grateful he would always take control in their interactions, not forcing her to think too much – she was happy that way.

The moment she saw him step out of their classroom, she approached him hesitantly.

"Are you okay, Oka? You seem... distracted" he said to her when he saw her coming. She shook her head silently, not sure how she should answer.

"I.. want to talk..." she glanced at the students passing them, and refocused on his face. "..privately"

He nodded in understanding and suddenly she felt his hand on her back. She looked at him, curiously, but his face wasn't showing anything that would concern her. As he started leading her downstairs, his hand still gently pushing her in the right direction as they walked, she thought to herself that maybe this was what friends do – after all, she didn't have much reference when it came to friendship. Surely he didn't mean it in an intimate way. She needed to get used to his touch again... it's been a few days since they hung out together.

They arrived at the end of a hallway on the first floor, where no students usually came – simply because there wasn't anything of interest there.

"Thank you, Taro..." she said when they stopped. "I've been having some trouble... in my club... And.. I thought you could... help..." Her voice was becoming weaker and weaker as she spoke, slowly realising how Taro would react. He told her not to come back, but she resisted, and now she wanted his help? How foolish of her... But she had no choice but to come back to her club, and she couldn't tell Taro about the reason why...

Just like she expected, his face lit up with anger when she spoke. He took a step towards her, and she stepped back. She didn't want him to be angry with her, she had problems that he could never understand and she needed his help. She would only ahve to apologize to him, right? It would be okay – it had to be.

"Look, I'm sorry-!" she raised her voice, but was still trying her best to remain calm. She didn't mean to be rude to him. He'd done nothing to deserve it. "I can't just abandon my club, and I won't do that, even if staying hurts" hesitantly, she took a step closer to him, surprising him ever so slightly. "You don't have to understand, all I ask is that you listen to me and help me"

He was silent. What did it mean? Did she have to talk even more..? With all of her confidence gone, she stepped even closer to him and looked up into his eyes, hoping to show him how much she needed this. How much she needed _him_.

"Please... Taro..." her eyes were wet with tears, but she continued talking. "You have to listen..."

Suddenly, she felt him come closer and wrap his arms around her. Her eyes went wide at the realisation – he forgave her! She knew he would understand, eventually.

"I'm listening, Oka" he assured her, keeping her close to him. It was all she needed – all her problems, her doubts faded when he embrace her with the kidness and compassion only he could give her. "Tell me everything"

She took a breath and decided to start from an explaination. Of course, she couldn't tell him everything.

"Those last two weeks have been... really hard for me..." she stuttered just a little bit. "And my club has always been my hiding spot from all my problems... I feel safe there" she whispered. She knew how closely the feeling of being safe was connected to love. But she wasn't lying to him – the club was the only place she really felt at home, despite everything that happened there.

He pulled away for a moment, looking closely into her eyes, looking slightly concerned. What was wrong? Did she say something he didn't like..?

"I thought you felt safer with me..." she looked down, not capable of facing him when he said this. He was right. Was it betrayal, choosing her club over him? She had to finally decide... but she didn't know how... Letting go of her club, her friends, everything she knew just to be with him, would feel liberating, but she would be scared. What if he'd abandon her later, leaving her on her own...? No, it was part of her trust for him to know he would never do such a thing to her.

"I'm so sorry... I-I don't know what came over me, Taro..." she threw herself into the comfort of his arms again and burst out crying. "It's so hard to know anything for sure anymore..."

She relaved in his embrace, sobbing quietly. He patted her head gently, keeping her close. She felt safe beyond words now... she felt cared for, maybe even... loved.

"It's alright. You can stay with me today" he told her, and his sweet words were enough to give her the comfort she needed so much. "I will take care of you"

"Thank you" she said, and put her hands on his back, feeling his warmth under her fingers and feeling like the happiest girl alive.

Shin's POV

He still could not fully understand what happened to him and Oka before class. From the moment she entered the clubroom, she looked somehow... distracted. Lost in her own world could'd been the most accurate way to discribe her then.

But when she took one of the empty seats, something in the air around them changed. It was... almost supernatural. But then he felt her mind reaching out to his, trying to break through his defenses. She didn't think he was capable of sensing her, but he'd had enough mind reading for maybe his whole life after his encounter with the Succubus the previous day. And he knew he was strong enough to resist her. How did she even learn to expand her consciousness besides her body like this? He'd never thought she had the potential for something like this.

But he couldn't let her break inside, so he had to focus on fighting back. As he did, he was pulled into another plain of existance along with her. It was like they'd both left their bodies and were floating in an empty void, completely alone, but together.

She'd made a link beetween them when she first reached out. He was going to use it to his advantage. It wasn't hard to break through her defenses – from the moment she felt him, she was practically defenseless. And it wasn't like he had much experience with this sort of thing, either. He was relaying fully on instinct and his knowledge of magic and other dimensions to navigate through her mind. He found what he was looking for – Taro Yamada, his greatest rival and nemesis.

The only thing he was looking for were her feelings for this boy – nothing else concerned him. He just had to find a particularly emotional memory with him, and he would finally see the truth. There- their conversation on Thursday, when she woke up in the nurse's office after her vision. He dug deeper into her feelings at that moment, until he found something that connected all of her memories of Taro. It must'd been her love for him.

He could feel it clearly now. At first, he didn't even recognize it as love. It was nothing like what he felt for her. Her love for Taro was ready for sacrifice, but not for bloodshed, it was passionate, but patient and considerate. It was pure, almost angelic, just like everything about her. It was the way love was supposed to be, not the twisted, dark feeling that was controlling him. He wanted his love for her to be like hers for Taro – unconditional, altruistic and lasting. Her love was willing to give, having nothing in return... while he could only take. He wanted someone to love him like this so much... but it wasn't going to be her... She could never love him. Nobody would ever accept him the way he was right now, and he understood that long ago – he should stop lying to himself – it was pointless. But his heart didn't want to listen. It never did. Even if he knew it was never going to work, he had to keep trying, never give up hope, or he would be left heartbroken forver.

Just when he lost focus, he felt her push back, and before he knew it, she was inside. It was almost like trying to hide from someone in an empty room – he couldn't stop her from seeing everything now. He desperately tried to push her away, but he knew it was pointless... She didn't seem to be looking for anything in particular, but was instead seeing glimpses of everything at once. He was certaing this was her first time in someone else's mind.

He couldn't stop her from sensing his pain, however. She lingered way too long at the memory of last Wednesday, when he saw Taro hug her. He was trying to resist, but he could not. It was overwhelming, the pain, remembering it, and the fact that she knew... He couldn't help but wonder how much of it she would understand... he hoped she wasn't quick to jump to conclusions...

When she retreated from his mind, it felt like a knot on neck that was preventing him from breathing loosened up, and then disappeared completely when she was gone. He could finally think on his own, without being forced to be still. It was hard to describe to someone who had never felt it, but he didn't wish it upon anyone... well, maybe Taro...

With his mind invaded twice in less than twelve hours, he was absolutely done with all of the supernatural stuff for the day. Before he left to go to class, he caught Kokuma leaving and told her that he would be abscent for the rest of the day. She didn't seem to mind, and was maybe already getting used to him ditching the club for mysterious reasons after yesterday.

* * *

You may have noticed the lack of author's notes in the last chapters - I edited them out. I might actually stop writing them and just delete this chapter's notes after I post the next one. I've noticed that most stories don't have author's notes at all and that mine ruin the suspense a bit... so yeah, if you like me writing author's notes, let me know but personally, I might stop writing them alltogeher.


	28. Trying to forget

**Author's notes:** I know this is a bit of a surprise, but here's another chapter. Unless you have exellent memory, I recommend reading the last few chapters to get what's actually going on, since there's been two months since the last chapter (sorry about that) - I had to read the last few chapters before writing this.

 **Classtime, Wednesday**

Oka's POV

She was in her classroom, listening to the counselor's lecture. After Kanon-sensei's disappearance yesterday, the headmaster decided Kunahito-sensei could teach the students of class 3-2 until a new teacher would be hired. The guidance counselor was actually a good teacher, strict, but kind and patient. Even Oka's notes looked much more neat and organized than usually.

After spending lunchtime with Taro she felt much better than before. He comforted her and forgave her for their recent fight, he accepted her no matter what she did... Or could it be that she desperately wanted to idealize him after what she saw in the depths of Shin's mind...? Either way, she couldn't deny that she was a lot calmer than in the morning, and was now patiently awaiting the end of class for the day.

Shin's POV

Ever since the morning he wanted nothing more than for this day to end. His interaction with Oka left him completely shaken. She'd seen everything... it was only a matter of time before she'd figure it all out. She had no right to invade his mind, his thoughts, the memories that only he needed to know about. She started it, he was only protecting himself... And when he saw her mind, he was only looking for one thing – her feelings for Taro. It was the only thing he needed to know, though to clarify would be a more appropiate word. Her thoughts only confirmed his suspicions. And she- She found everything he so desperately was trying to hide from her.

Given the circumstances, it was understandable that he wished to avoid the club that day... especially Oka. Upon exiting his classroom, he headed downstairs immidiately, hoping to avoid the crowds of students that would soon fill the corridors of the school.

Oka's POV

On her way to the club she spotted someone she really did not see today. Shin was walking downstairs and seemed to be in a hurry... she guessed that he was going to the club – where else would he be going at this time of the day?

She tried to avoid him, but it was too late – he'd already noticed her. All she could do to avoid him was to look down at her feet and pretend not to see him as she quickly moved towards her locker.

He didn't pass her by, or go to the club. She could feel his gaze on her back when she left he school... Was he leaving, as well? If so, that was an unusual change of his daily routine... but over the past week or so, he left the club many times.

She didn't want to have to face him after what happened in the morning... but she knew he was right behind her, and she couldn't stand people watching her. Turning around, she was surprised to see he was nowhere to be seen.

„Shin-?" she called out, sure that he was still there. „We need to talk."

She still didn't see him anywhere, so she turned around in defeat and nearly jumped when she saw him next to her.

„Well?" he asked her as if nothing happened. She was silent for a bit... how was he there...? „Talk, then."

This was her last chance to hide this from him. What if he didn't know what actually happened today...? No, she was tired of constantl having to hide things from him... She had to ask him.

„Do you know what happened in the morning?" she noticed he was silent, but didn't look surprised, or confused. He knew the truth.

„You wanted to read my mind..." hearing him say this somehow made it feel more real. „I pushed you away and yours. Don't worry – I didn't look at anything that didn't directly concern me. I only needed to know one thing and I found it." How was that suppposed to make her feel any less uncomfortable about the whole thing? And how did her feelings for Taro directly concern him? „And no, I don't regret doing that. If you want me to apologize, I won't."

She wanted to outright slap him in the face for what he just said. But then she remembered – she wasn't the only victim. She learned more about him that he did about her.

„I would've done something I'd regret, but..." she spat out, still unable to control her wrath. „But I already read your mind, and there's hardly anything more I could've done."

They reached the edge of the schoolgrounds, and she stopped abruptly.

„And I think that makes us even." she turned and walked away, not looking back at though she still felt like the only victim, with her feelings for Taro exposed, it was only a bit satisfying knowing that she hurt him more. And she was sure he wasn't unaffected by her words, despite not showing it... He deserved it.

Supana's POV

Supana Churu was walking through the hallways on the first floor wihtout a clear purpose. She didn't really want to go to the club yet, and an hour still remained until the daily ritual.

She couldn't stop thinking about the recent events... Yesterday, the headmaster announced that Kaho Kanon, Oka's teacher went missing and that a substitute would be hired soon. How could a teacher go missing at school during the day? Were some of her stuents involved...? It was a terrifying possibility that there could be a criminal among the students, but she couldn't help but consider it. Her curious mind kept coming up with new ideas.

„I wonder..." she muttered to herself. „What really happened?"

Before she could think any more about this, she heard footsteps from behind her and turned around to see Kokuma.

„Oh-! Hi, 'kuma." she desperately tried to forget about her recent confession... maybe they could still sort things out as friends...

„What are you doing here? I was on my way to the club, but you... are you going in the opposite direction?" she seemed almost concerned.

„I'm just walking around, trying to figure something out... What do you think happened to Kanon-sensei?"

The ohter girl looked at her curiously before replying.

„I... honeslty think she's dead." she didn't expect her to put it so bluntly. It was probably what most students at school thought, but no-one dared to voice these suspicions.

„You may be... right..."

„Supana -? I wanted to ask you something..."

„What is it?"

„Have you mind up your mind yet? About... me?" oh no... She was hoping they could avoid this subject...

„No. And I don't think I will anytime soon..." there was no point pretending she'd already thought this through. „Just... give me some more time, ok?"

Kokuma seemed a bit confused but tilted her head slightly, but nodded.

„Alright. If that makes you happy..." she then walked off towards the club, leaving the very confused Supana alone in the hallway again.

 **Author's notes:** I'm sorry about this chapter being so short, but this is kind of a filler and I'm still getting used to writing again. I hope this doesn't suck as much as I think it does... So yeah, progress on Supana x Kokuma and some Oka x Shin. Don't worry if you're more of an Oka x Taro person, the long streak of Oka x Shin chapters just means I'm preparing for a lot of Oka x Taro in the near future 3

See you!

~Navypink


	29. New teacher

**Author's notes:** I'm back from vacation with a new chapter for you! I promise, this one and the next one I mostly have written witll surely make up for the long wait and the last filler chapter. You'll see why.

 **Wednesday, evening...**

Shin's POV

She made him feel something new today... Multiple times. First when she read his mind in the morning, then after school... And it wasn't a pleasant feeling.

He was being honest when he said he didn't regret digging into her mind. She was the one that attacked him, for God's sake, and now she was expecting him to apologize? Once again, she failed to comprehend the complexity of their situation – she felt like the only victim only because she was hurt, while he was only defending himself. She had to finally understand that she wasn't always innocent, and that her actions had the potential to hurt other people. She was always so careless, so short-sighted... It was all because her feelings clouded her vision and affected her judgement negatively.

After school, she wasn't acting like herself. And he wasn't used to her being so... confrontational. He tried his best not to be angry with her, but it prooved more difficult than he anticipated. It was almost like she was saying and doing everything she could do enrage him – and he hated feeling like everyone else was against him (though, truthfully, sometimes they were). In the end, at least he didn't make her cry.

She seemed to become more and more confident over time – given her current situation, it was probably for the best. Though... in a way, he missed the poor, innocent Oka who was constantly bullied by others but still wanted to do good above anything else, and despite everything the world threw at her. That certain childish naivety faded within her during the past two weeks – she was no longer the pure, weak girl who needed to be protected from the world around her at all times, and he wasn't sure why or how that happened. But she changed, and so did his feelings for her – with every encounter he found himself growing more and more addicted to her. Slowly, he was becoming aware of how much she really meant to him – and it was something he would never admit to her.

Today, he saw how devastating his attatchemtn to her could be. Nobody ever hurt him as deeply as she did in just a few words today... He couldn't let her know how affected he was by those words, or she would use the amount of power she had over him to her advantage somehow... People were manipulative, and even she wasn't perfect. He should leave her alone for a few days, until she'd forgive him for what happened today and he'd forget how much she hurt him.

? POV

"Really?" she said. "You managed to get me a job there?"

She'd been waiting for a call from her sister for a while now, but it seemed to pay off – tomorrow was her first day at a new job, and she couldn't wait to meet all of her students...

"I don't know how to thank you... I'll see you tomorrow, then!" she hung up.

The flat she lived in wasn't big, but it was enough for her. At that moment, she was sitting on a couch in the living room, watching the television. She wondered what tomorrow would bring her... It was bound to be exciting.

 **Thursday, before school...**

? POV

So this was what Akademi Highschool looked like... It was a famous school, both for its prestigeus building and surroundings, which were enormous and very impressive for a school, and its students – many wealthy families sent their children here to learn, most notably the Saikos, whose heir was a third-year student here.

She dug all that up on the internet the night before, after it was confirmed that she would, indeed, work here. She still couldn't believe her luck – such a good school, and it was mostly because of her sister, who worked here as a guidence counselor.

Genka Kunahito, her older sibling, was nearly nothing like her. She was strict, brilliant, and extremely professtional. She spent most of her time in the school, watching over the students and making sure everything was as it should be. Recently, though, they barely saw eachother because of her work. The mysterious disappearences began about two weeks ago, and there was even one accident that resulted in the death of a substitute nurse a week ago. But Genka told her she would be safe. She hoped her sister was right...

Stepping inside the school, she eyes the students curiously. She'd alredy caught the eyes of a few boys, but they were so... boring... Average. She wasn't _that_ cheap... When she heard about this school, she was expecting something better... And she was still waiting for it – something exciting.

She finally found her sister's office and made sure she looked presentable. She had her shirt's buttons all in order, which was rare, just for the talk with her sister – she would undo them later, anyway – but she knew Genka didn't appreciate her choice of outfits for reasons she personally never understood.

Knocking confidently, she heard her sister's voice:

"Come in." she sounded as cold and professional as ever, but she noticed a tinge of tiredness in her voice... She barely slept these days, trying to uncover the truth behind the latest incidents.

"It's me." she said, and opened the door to reveal Genka's office. She was seeing it for the first time, but it was about what she expected it to be – clean, light, and not very personal. If she had an office for herself, it would look like the extact opposite of this. Genka watched her closely from behind her glasses.

"Finally, you look descent..." her sister said, and she walked up to her desk.

"Not even a "good to see you" after all that time...? You're hurting my feelings, you know?" she answered with a teasing smile. Genka stood up to hug her briefly and smiled.

"Of course it's good to see you again, sister." they sat on a comfortable, red couch near the door. Her sister was back to the strictly professional she knew so well. "Now. We need to go over your work here."

She barely stopped herself from groaning at that. She knew all about her job – she'd been in a few schools already...

"You're going to teach class 3-2. It's on the third floor." her sister started, and proceeded to explain her schedule, payment, duties and the rules at this school. She wasn' paynig much attention – she'd heard most of this before, but she knew her sister would want to remind her of all that just in case – she was a perfectionist like that. Meanwhile, she was looking around the office, distracted, as she wondered about her new students...

Once she knew literally everything there was to know about her new job, they stood up and Genka led her outside. Before she could leave to go to her classroom, though, her sister's voice stopped her.

"There's one more thing I'd like you to remember – a warning."

"What is it?" she asked, feeling impatient already.

"I don't want this to end like in the last... four places you worked at." was she really talking about _this_ again...? "You were hired here because the headmaster trusted me when I reccomended you – please be careful and try not to... provoke any male students this time."

How dare she even suggest that? Like she didn't know her at all...

"Don't say that – the last one was an accident." ...and so were the previous three. "Don't forget about that one girl who-"

Genka raised her hand, silencing her.

"I know, I know, let's not talk about it now..." she hated it when people stopped her when she wanted to say or do something. And Genka did it all the time. Like she was scared someone was listening to them... "And about the last time – even if it was an accident, you've caused it. I'm only warning you – my career is on the line as well this time."

And with that, the door was slammed shut and she was left alone in the corridor. She wouldn't cause any incidents this time... she hoped.

Before entering her classroom, she took a deep breath, adjusting her shirt and her hair. She was more than ready.

"Time to show off." she said to herself with a smirk.

 **Warning! Mature content:** partial nudity and suggestive themes

Oka's POV

Where was the counselor? She was never late, and class'd began over five minutes ago. Something must had happened...

Her trail of thought was cut off when the door swung open and an unfamiliar figure entered the classroom. In an instant, all eyes were on her, as she casually took her place by the teacher's desk.

Indeed, she was an unusual sight... especially in a school like theirs. The woman seemed to be in her early thirties, tall and well-built, she moved with a strange kind of grace. Her short dark hair was tied up in a bun, with a couple of bangs falling around and onto her face. But her outfit was what seperated her from any teacher she'd ever seen.

She wore red high heels that made her legs seem even longer, with a matching short skirt. Similiarly, her black jacket looked at least two sizes too small (although maybe it was meant to be that way, as the sleeves seemed to fit), revealing the edge of her blood-red bra and her breasts, which Oka never thought could be as large as hers. She wore dark stockings to complete the outfit, which, overall looked like something that definately shouldn't be worn at a school by anyone.

Oka was watching her closely the entire time, unable to tear her eyes away from such a strange sight.

The teacher briefly looked over the faces of all students in the classroom, mainly the boys. She seemed completely uninterested in the quiet Occult Club president sitting at the back of the room.

"Good morning" the woman said slowly. But she didn't even need to say anything to make sure everyone was paying attention. "My name is Mida Rana and I'm your new teacher."

As began her lecture, she looked around the classroom, curiously, catching all sorts of reactions.

Mai Waifu seemed absolutely terrified and sat stiffly in her chair, frozen. Was she afraid of the possible competition for her loved one...? The Martial Arts club leader, Budo Masuta, was very much openly staring at the seductive teacher. His eyes couldn't stop moving beetween her partially exposed bra and her tight skirt. At the same time, Kuu Dere may had been the only one taking notes in the classroom, completely unphased, looking like nothing unusual was happening. Sakyu Basu, unlike Mai, didn't seem intimidated by , or uncomfortable at the slightest. She was watching the teacher with a calm grin on her face.

She caught a glimpse of Ryuto Ippongo trying desperately to hide in his notes to avoid staring at the teacher, before turning her head to look at Taro. She expected him to look back at her and smile like he always did before, or just let her know he saw her...

 _He didn't. He didn't even notice her._

Instead, she saw him staring at their new teacher. Why was he looking at her like that...? What made her so interesting to him...? No, he was only surprised – they both were when she appeared in the classroom. But was it really just it?

She dismissed those thoughts and focused on class again, still watching Taro in the corner of her eye.

Suddenly, Mida Rana stopped talking and looked directly at Taro. Oka tensed up in her chair. What did she want from him?

"You're not paying attention." she said to him. Was it really why she bothered to stop her lecture...? "What did I just say?"

Taro was looking at the teacher, speechless, for a moment. If he wasn't listening... why was he looking at her all the time? But she didn't think anyone else was paying attention – it was impossible, given how... "distracting" the teacher was.

"I... I don't know, sensei." he answered honestly. There he was – the Taro she grew to love. It was only a moment of distraction, nothing to worry about. was still looking right at him, as if she was expecting something more. "I apologise."

The woman had a teasing smile on her lips before she waved a finger at him – a warning.

"You should be listening more... closely from now on." she said and there was a seductive tone in her voice. Was she really trying to seduce Taro...? Well, it wouldn't work, anyway... right? It couldn't.

But his eyes never left her since the beginning of the lesson...

After a moment of silence to let her words sink in Mida Rana walked back up to her desk (she was roaming the classroom while talking before) and to everyone's surprise sat on the edge of it, crossing her legs in a way that barely left her underwear covered – Oka didn't think she'd care particularly either way. She saw some male students looking over her tan, now more exposed legs. While talking, she kept crossing and uncrossing her legs slowly, and Oka tried her best not to look at her panties, which were now surely fully exposed under her short, tigh skirt. Of course, she saw some of the boys staring then...

A long sigh from the teacher brought everyone's attention back to the actual lesson. Mida Rana was toying with the button of her black jacket, tilting her head back a bit and looking through the window.

"It's hot outside, isn't it...?" she pulled at the top button, but it remained in place. "It's getting worse inside, as well..." she stated casually before undoing the button, revealing the majority of her bra – Oka felt like her words had more than one meaning somehow...

She half expected her to continue undressing before the students, but to her surprise (and great relief), Mida remained in place without doing anything inappropiate, at least for a while (aside from the way she sat to expose even more of her cleavage and legs, and the fact that she was pretty much half naked at this point). A few minutes passed until she suddenly pulles some papers from her bag that laid on her desk and got down on the floor at last.

Sitting at the edge of Budo Masuta's desk, she started sorting through the papers in her hands without a hurry, but not before letting out a moan that sounded completely out of place in the silence of the classroom when the back of her skirt touched the hard desk.

Budo looked like he was about to have a heart attack any second then, and, drawing sharp breaths, kept staring at 's rather voluminous behind that was resting on his desk, as if he was considering touching it – it was very much within his reach, after all... (Oka didn't think would mind it that much – furthermore, it was quite obvious she was waiting to draw reactions like this).

Finally, she seemed to notice the boy sitting below her by the desk and passed him the pile of papers.

"Take one for yourself and pass the rest." she said to him, but there was nothing seductive in her voice – she seemed rather... bored, for the first time during the lesson. She then turned to look at the classroom and said, more loudly, so all students could hear her: "This is a short test concerning what I talked about during this lesson. If you were paying attention, you shouldn't have trouble."

The students were looking at eachother, some paniced, and some annoyed. She saw Musume Ronshaku asking Sakyu Basu some last-minute questions about the material. She should be able to handle herself, she thought... it wasn't that difficult, and she was listening most of the time. While waiting for her test to be passed to her, she wondered... was this 's strategy from the beginning – to distract them and see who was truly focused on the lesson, and who wasn't? If so, she pitied the boys... that teacher was clearly toying with them. She could imagine that if a male teacher was acting like was today, she would be pretty distracted herself...

Finally, the test was on her desk, and she could once again focus on school, and not analyzing the teacher's strange bevahiour. Taking her favourite purple pen out of her pencil case, she began writing.

A few minutes passed in silence, with the only sound that could'd been heard in the classroom being the scribbling of pens on paper. She also occasionally heard 's heels on the floor as she moved from desk to desk, checking the student's progress. Suddenly, she heard her stop by Taro's desk for a bit longer than she usually did. Turning her head, she saw her leaning down and resting her elbows on Taro's desk, her face and her exposed chest far too close to him for Oka's comfort. She waited for her to do something, or for Taro to push her away, or show her that he wasn't okay with her forcing herself on him in such an obvious manner. But he didn't say a word as he slowly looked up from him test, and, dragging her eyes across her bare skin, finally reached her eyes.

"How are you handling the test, Yamada-kun?" she asked him, quietly enough not to disturb other students around her. Taro was silent for a while, with his lips parted slightly, looking beetween her eyes and her bra. Oka had no idea why he was hesitating with the answer for that long – it wasn't a difficult question.

"I think I'm fine, Rana-sensei." nodded with a small smile and left him alone to sit by her desk, watching the rest of the students and looking at the clock from time to time.

She didn't do anything until the bell rang, meaning the end of class, and she collected the tests from all students.

Oka got up from her desk and threw her bag over her shoulder... She didn't think this lesson would drag on for this long. Now that it was finally over, she could finally hang out with Taro and forget about the horrible, perverted teacher, at least for a moment.

She turned to Taro, and he actually noticed her this time. She smiled – there was nothing to worry about.

"So... what do you-?" she started talking, but when they were about to leave the classroom, Taro stopped suddenly. Oka turned around to look at him, and saw 's hand resting on his shoulder.

"I don't think I'll let you go yet..." she said, and there was something in her voice that worried Oka greatly. "We still have to go over that test."

 _Oh._ Was it really just about the test? She stepped closer to Taro, beetween him and the teacher, and looked up at her – she didn't think she'd ever been this bold towards a teacher.

"There's no reason to be talking about a test in private. And lunchtime is not the time for students to stay in the classrooms." she said loudly, with a newfound courage. This teacher was already too close to Taro – she wouldn't let her take him from her against his will. Who did she think she was to decide for Taro how he should spend his break with the pathetic excuse of a test? If she really wanted to talk about school, she wouldn't have anything against Oka staying in the classroom.

Mida Rana's face dropped a bit, gaining a serious expression all of a sudden.

"Oh, I don't think you're in the position to interfere with my work, young girl. You talk about how I can't force him to stay here, yet you're the one who wants to make him stay with you for the break." she said, and Oka felt almost... threatened. Like a small child, who couldn't compare to the wisdom of adults. She felt so... small. So pathetic.

She looked to Taro, who was silent during the whole exchange, expecting him to side with her. Was he really okay with this...?

"Oka, don't worry about me. It shouldn't take long. Just... go. I'll meet you after school."

 _What?_ She picked a fight with a teacher for his sake, something she'd never done before, and he didn't want her help? What was it about that teacher that made him agree to spend time with her instead of Oka...? But how could she argue with that? He made his choice, and she knew better than to disobey what he told her.

She nodded hesitantly and left the classroom, hearing the door slam shut behind her. She didn't want to go to the Occult Club after yesterday... Her only choice was to be alone for now. Until Taro would come back.

* * *

Wandering the halls of the school restlessly, she tried to find something to pass her time – she couldn't. Not without Taro. It was at that moment she truly realised how much she needed him. She was nothing without him.

 _And he left her alone._

 _Why did he leave her alone...?_

What did Mida Rana want with him? Did she want to scold him for not paying attention during the lesson? If so, why did she not keep more people with her – he wasn't the only distracted one. Or was it for the extact opposite reason – she had no idea.

Either way, she was sure that Taro had his reasons that were beyond her current understanding. She could ask him about it after school, when they would have the time to meet and talk. He was strong, after all, and she knew he cared about her – he would never betray her like this. He couldn't.

Mida's POV

Feeling impatient, she closed the classroom's door. That girl... she was a bit of a pain, and costed her a few precious moments, but it didn't matter anymore – the last obstacle was out of the way.

Looking at the boy before her, not trying to hide her true intentions anymore, she wondered... what made him so special among her other students? He _was_ kind of cute, but it couldn't be just it...

The reason didn't matter to her right now, because at that moment, she only knew one thing – she desired him like she never did anyone before. That boy made her senses go wild the second she saw him and her instincts take over. She didn't care about anything else then – she needed to have him right now.

She wondered how she wanted to do it... They only had half an hour before the next class would begin, so she shouldn't get _too_ carried away... She had a class to teach later on. And he was going to attend it. But for now... she could have some fun.

She leaned back against the door, exposing nearly all of her bra to him, she was sure, and looking at him through her half-closed eyelids, flashed him a predatory smile.

"Ready for your... _private lesson...?_ "

* * *

 **Author's notes:** So... that was quite the chapter, wasn't? Make sure to write how detailed you want the next scene to be - I left it for the next chapter to ask your opinion, since I don't want it too tame, or too extreme for sensitive readers. If I don't get any feedback on this, it will be about as bad as the Succubus and Incubus scenes a few chapters back.

As you can see, Shin is introduced to more and more feelings as the story progresses. I think it's important to highlight the change Oka fails to notice herself.

This chapter begins the third act of the story. Act I, so the first week, was where I introduced the most important characters and plots. Act II, so monday, tuesday and wednesday expanded the main characters personalities and continued the sideplots of Supana and Kokuma and the Basu sisters. And now that everything is ready, Mida Rana appeared - and as you can tell, things will get a bit... interesting with her to stir some trouble. But that's for the next chapters.

For now, the next chapter will feature Taro's private lesson with Mida, but don't worry, Shin fans - there will also be his short pov in the next chapter, as well as a longer pov of another character linked with him. Have fun speculating what will happen then - I love to read your theories.

That should be all for this chapter, have fun during the last days of summer vacation, and I will see you all in a few days with a new chapter!

~Navypink


	30. Behind the shut doors

**Author's notes:** I got sick so I spent the whole day writing - here's another chapter.

Also, there's a clear content warning in the middle of it. Please, if you were bothered by the scenes with the Succubi a few chapters back, scroll down until you see the "end of mature content" sign. Pleace do that - I don't want to see more reviews telling me how much I ruined your life. Thank you.

 **Lunchtime, Thursday...**

Inkyu's POV

Yesterday was... confusing for her. For both of them, that is.

The morning seemed normal – Sakyu decided they would hang out by the east fountain outside of school to get some fresh air. They talked a lot about Muja Kina's sudden disappearence. She personally never met her, but heard she was hired as a substitute nurse for about a week. This accident seemed really strange, though... almost like it was staged by someone. It was just too brutal and twisted – and that poor nurse... she only started working at their school a few days ago. Sakyu said it was weird how she died like that, but didn't believe that it could'd been a murder.

Classtime passed quickly that day. And it was on lunchtime that strange things began to happen...

Sakyu found a note in her locker when they were on their way to the fountain again to eat lunch. It was from Ayano Aishi, a second year student who helped Sakyu find her lost ring last week. Her older sister gladly repaid the favor – that old ring was very precious to her, for reasons Sakyu herself did not fully understand. Even since their mother gave it to her on her sixteenth birthday, she never took it off, unless she absolutely had to.

Anyway, when they got to the rooftop, something happened. She wasn't sure what, it was such a blurr... Then she woke up on the floor, after a few hours. Sakyu didn't know what happened either – she said they probably passed out due to how hot it was outside in the afternoon. She knew better than to argue – this was the most logical explaination. What other possibilities were there, anyway...? But, somehow... she was convinced something was wrong. And her sister knew that as well.

She felt like there was something she was missing, some final piece of the puzzle that would make it all make sense somehow. But she just couldn't remember...

Sakyu told her to meet her by the fountain on lunchtime again. She said she was worried about Inkyu's state after the incident on Tuesday – that she wasn't acting like herself. It was true – she caught herself lost in thought multiple times the last two days, abscent – and the strangest thing was that she had no idea what she was thinking about when that happened.

So, after class ended, she was walking downstairs alone. After all those incidents, the school seemed kind of scary to her... she was afraid to be alone at any time, like someone was watching her and waiting for an opprotunity to hurt her. She didn't know why she felt that way after Tuesday.

She was just about to get to the first floor, when she noticed someone in the hallway.

It was a boy – tall, with dark hair and bright purple eyes, who seemed a year older than her. Their eyes met for a split second before she lowered her gaze to the floor, frozen. There was something in the way he looked at her that made her feel uneasy – the way his eyes seemed to pierce her very soul with such intensity she didn't dare to look at him again and quickly got going.

Who was he...? The chocker on his neck marked him as an Occult Club member, but other than that, she didn't know anything about him. In the crowd of students she passed at school every day, it was hard to know the names of even half of them. Especially when Sakyu explicitly stated how much she hated the Occult Club. Inkyu had no idea why she despised the students in it so much. She insisted on tormenting its leader, Oka Ruto. She felt a bit sorry for the girl that became their target just because of her club, but knew better than to argue with her sister – Sakyu was her best friend, and she cared about her like nobody else. Her only friend...

Shin's POV

He saw her again. The Incubus.

He felt like she was haunting him these past two days – reminding him of his failure to stop them from hurting Oka on Tuesday. She and her sister should'd been dead by now... if it wasn't for the demons protecting them.

Yet they still came to school as if nothing happened to them.

He wouldn't openly admit it, even to himself, but he was glad, in a way, that they survived. He didn't need to dispose of their corpses, hide the truth from the police and live in the fear that someone would find out what he did. But... it wasn't just it. Upon seeing the Basu sisters alive and well, he tried his best to convince himself that it was for the best. And he did. He realised Oka could never love a murderer – even if the murder was the ultimate proof of his feelings for her. She would never appreciate how much he'd done to avenge her... And she would never know, anyway.

There was also one thing – one argument that seemed completely irrational to him. He still remembered how he felt after that nurse's death. And he didn't want to feel guilt ever again.

He was hoping they really didn't remember any of it. Because if they did... it wouldn't be good for anyone.

With the current outcome, he got revenge by making Sakyu suffer, and they had no idea. It was done – over.

But the memory of the Incubus still haunted him. That girl... that creature, it couldn't leave him alone since Tuesday.

He chose to help her – he did what was right, and there were no conclusions to draw from it. It didn't mean anything. He loved Oka, and no-one, human or demon, could change that.

And yet... he still couldn't forget the warmth of her lips when he kissed her, how she trembled under his touch... Oka had lost this certain innocence a long time ago, but... this demon... She remained as pure as a child, despite all her years of demonhood.

He kept reminding himself that Inkyu Basu was a completely different person, that she helped her sister hurt Oka... that he thought her worthy of death for it. But wasn't the demon a part of her? Weren't they somehow the same?

Then there was the way she kept looking at him – with a mixture of fear and curiousity. Did she suspect what happened yesterday...? _And did that mean he would have to silence her?_

Inkyu's POV

She couldn't stop thinking about that boy... what made him so special?

Without looking, she descended the stairs before she bumped into someone and saw another familiar face – Supana Churu.

Supana was her classmate and an Occult Club member. They didn't talk much, as she usually only spent time with Sakyu, but she could tell this girl wasn't creepy or weird – she was actually quite friendly towards her classmates.

"Sorry, Inkyu, I didn't see you there." Supana said.

"It's alright... I should've paid more attention to where I was going." she answered and smiled politely. She turned her head to look at the staircase she came from. She wondered if Supana'd seen him too... "Hey, do you know that guy I just passed by on the stairs?"

The girl was silent for a moment... Maybe she really hadn't seen him.

"O-oh, I didn't realise what you were talking about for a bit. That's Shin, my clubmate. Why do you ask?"

'Shin'... she'd never met anyone with that name before. She was silent. _Why_ extacly did she ask?

"Well, if you're interested, our club's always open for visitors. It's not like we summon demons in there or somethin'..."

There was an awkward laugh from her and a smile, but Inkyu remained ominously silent. Summoning demons... interesting...

"Thank you, but I wasn't really... interested in the club..." she said.

Sakyu would be mad at her for taking this long-! Feeling her face heat up suddenly, she left in a hurry.

 **Warning! Mature content:** partial nudity and highly suggestive themes!

Taro's POV

"Ready for your... _private... lesson_?" Mida purred, locking the door behind her.

Taro was... conflicted about his current situation. He dismissed Oka, but it was mainly to avoid her getting in trouble with .Now, he felt a bit guilty, but she could surely handle herself. It wasn't like she needed to be babysitted by him all the time.

He focused on the main issue again – ms. Rana's sudden interest in him. Since the beginning of their lesson, she seemed to take a particuar liking to him – and it didn't go unnoticed. He had no idea why, but ever since Osana, every girl he met seemed to be interested in him – each for a different reason, of course, but there was still something odd about it. Not that he was complaining, of course – why would he? He knew many guys his age would kill for that amount of attention. Except... all the girls that liked him had the tendency to disappear in mysterious ways, and he didn't want another accidents, like what happened to Muja. And this was escalating even quicker than his encounter with the nurse...

But how could he resist the charms of this teacher? He couldn't tell her about the accidents, she'd think him crazy. It would be almost... rude of him to tell her "no" right now. Oka was out of the way, and she wouldn't know what would soon happen in this very classroom... so why should he worry about the consequences? was very explicit in her desires, so her intentions were clear. And she didn't seem like the type to manipulate him into something later on. So there were seemingly no problems with this encounter. She was the one who started it, and he wouldn't dare reject her offer.

"I am." he answered her, and miss Rana's face lit up with a sly smile. She walked up to him slowly, her red heels clicking on the wooden floor.

"Well, if you are... _why wait_?" she said and before he knew it, her lips were on his, kissing him hungrily, her hands on the desk behind him, trapping him completely.

Without much hesitation, he kissed her back. It was hard the deny her skill and years of experience. She moaned when she felt him bite her lip softly. He moved his hands onto her back for support. He was still tightly pressed against the desk, but he didn't particularly mind Mida's aggressiveness. She seemed like a predator, hunting its prey. It made him want her even more.

Suddenly, he felt her pull away and her warm breath of his face.

"Why, one might think you're the one who started this... so eager already?" he didn't feel offended by her comment at all. She was being extremely provocative, it was no wonder he was affected. "Go on." she whispered to him. "I can see you staring at them~"

 _Her breasts._ They were right in front of his face, hidden only by her tight bra. Miss Rana's tan skin seemed a lot softer there... He wondered what it would be like to shove his hands inside of that blood-red bra, hear the sounds she would make then. He could still take her by surprise... But he was hesitant. In the passion of their kiss, he forgot about Oka completely... this was crazy! What would she think of him if she knew what happened?

Miss Rana was watching him closely. He saw her moving away from him and putting a hand on his chest, stopping him from escaping her grasp, while her other hand reached the top button of her jacket. Taro watched in silence, frozen.

The teacher was looking at him the entire time while she toyed with her jacket, slowly starting to undo another button. She smiled a predatory smile as she removed more and more of her jacket, until she tossed it to the floor behind her, leaving her only a half-unbottoned white shirt and her bra, which was now fully exposed, along with her chest. And how gorgeous of a sight that was... Taro felt like he lost his mind completely for that woman, as she leaned in closer to him again and pushed him harder against the desk.

"Now, boy... what are you waiting for?" she asked him before kissing him again, this time slower, more delicately. He remained still for the longest time, completely paralyzed by what was happening around him. "Nothing still...?" she whispered, pulling back for a moment. "Let me help you, then..." she grabbed both his hands in hers and guided them to her lower back. Taro hesitantly started kissing her back, but was quickly interruptes.

Catching him by surprise, she laid him completely on the desk and climbed onto it, her legs hooked around him. Her hungry kisses were slowly returning him to his previous state, and he felt himself getting lost in her touch once again. He let his hands roam freely on her back, slowly making their way up to her chest. His hands resting on the edge of her bra, she stopped kissing him and gasped in surprise. "O-oh~ Keep going... I know that's what you really want..."

With not a single second wasted, he nearly tore Mida's bra off when his hands moved to cup her breasts, disappearing completely inside her bra. He felt the woman bite his neck at the last moment to muffle a loud moan.

He started massaging her breasts slowly, picking up the pace rapidly. She managed to pull away from him, only to whisper, out of breath: "..Don't... stop." she managed to pant. Her voice only encouraged him to keep going. He could tell she was barely holding back her moans and gasp when his fingers brushed against her most sensitive spots. She kissed him again, roughly, hungrily, just like the first time. He felt her legs twitching impatiently.

Suddenly, he froze completely when he felt her hands reach his pants. How did it escalate this quickly...? They were barely kissing, and this...? What was he even thinking, letting himself commit something like tha _t with his own teacher_?! And Oka... oh, poor Oka, how disappointed she would be after something like this...

 **End of mature content**

"Why...?" he heard Mida's voice, which sounded like she just woke up from some sleep. Before he could question his decision, he pushed her off of him and miss Rana landed on the floor, her legs still widespread, panting and flushed. "Come back here!" he heard her cry, but he was already out the door. Still feeling quite confused and blushing, he made his way upstairs to the rooftop, where he hoped to regain his composure before class. He caught the eyes of a few curious girls on his way, but he didn't notice it.

Once on the rooftop, he leaned on the railing and tried to calm down. What just happened...? He rejected Mida Rana, and that wasn't good. She would teach them for at least a week now, and he would surely plan some sort of revenge on him. What should he do...? He couldn't tell Oka about it, she wouldn't understand... She was different than him in the way that she probably wouldn't stay with in that classroom at all. But... how was he supposed to resist her? It was just like when he met Muja... he lost all control over himself in the presense of an attractive woman. What was he supposed to do about the fact that girls seemed to like him so much? How could he control himself around them?

Maybe it was the growing frustration of his relationship with Oka that made him like this... They were... "friends" for nearly two weeks, and none of them did anything to further their relationship. With Muja, he showed some amount of self-control. But Mida... if she wasn't so impatient, she would'd gotten what she wanted for sure. He hoped it wouldn't escalate like that with any other girl, ever again. The act itself may had been pleasant and... exciting, but the consequences... He didn't want to think about that now. What was important was that he managed to regain control in the last moment. He hoped Oka wouldn't fall prey to his one fatal flaw... Maybe it was time to tell her how he felt about her.

Mida's POV

How dared that boy deny her?!

It took her a while to get up from the floor and find her jacket. The ungrateful little brat... She should'd known from the beginning that he wouldn't be right for this. Yet she craved him so much before... and she wasn't used to people not giving her what she wanted.

She risked her job, everything, just to get with that one boy... and he refused! He refused her! Did he know how much she was risking by openly seducing him in the middle of class... She thought she was irresistable. That her charm was enough to melt even the most stubborn of hearts. And yet there was something about him that made her desire him above anyone else... That made her willing to sacrifice her new job to give him the one opprotunity, probably in his whole life, to fulfill his desires, everything he was trying to hide and control, everything he ever wanted to do to a woman but never could. And he disobeyed her. He thought he was the one in control...? That his resistanse would do him any good? She was only giving him what he craved the most... She saw him staring at her the whole lesson, but it was more than the looks she got from the other schoolboys in his class. There was some boldness in the way he stared at her – some sort of inner power she'd never seen in someone his age. That was what drew her to him – his recklessness. She was sure he would even encourage her, but when she kissed him, he barely did anything.

That boy would surely be a problem... A disappointment, for sure, but she would find someone else to play with... If he told anyone what happened, she would be fired immidiately... And she would never regain her job as a teacher. But how she loved her work! She could never let it go. She would do anything it'd take to stay in that school.

* * *

 **Author's notes:** Well then... that was interesting...

Let me know what you thought of the side plot with Shin and Inkyu, I'm pretty sure I know where I want it to go, but I'll listen to you on this - if I get positive feedback on a possible side ship, I'll include Inkyu in some of the next chapters.

About Mida and Taro - what did you think? I'm still new to writing suggestive scenes, so let me know how I did. How will Oka react? And what will Taro do about it? You'll have to wait until the next chapter to find out.

See you~!


	31. Rumors spreading

**Author's notes:** This chapter is a bit dialogue-heavy. It happened because there's so much plot to cover in it, and it would be really long if I wanted a detailed describtion of everything that was happening, and I didn't feel they were necessary. Anyway, enjoy the new chapter!

 **Thursday, lunchtime...**

Taro's POV

He was leaving the rooftop after the bell rang, when he found a note on the ground. Curious, he picked it up. It said:

 _"Don't worry. Mida Rana won't be a problem for much longer."_

He examined the note for any kind of signature, but all he found was a small heart drawn a bit below the text. The handwriting wasn't familiar to him. How did someone know about what happened with ms. Rana...? And why did they care about him?

He decided to keep that note.

 **Thursday, after school**

Oka's POV

Finally, their next class with ms. Rana was over. She noticed that this time, her behaviour changed a bit. She wasn't as... aggressive as last time. And she no longer seemed to pay attention to Taro. She wondered why that was...

Taro... he didn't spend time with her at all on lunchtime, like he said he would. He told her that it would only take him a moment... Something suspicious was going on behind her back, and she couldn't ignore it anymore. She didn't like what her intuition was telling her.

After leaving her classroom, Oka didn't even look at Taro. On her way downstairs, she heard a couple of girls chatting.

"Have you heard about that new teacher?" Oka stopped on the stairs to listen, curious about any news regarding ms. Rana.

"What about her?"

"I heard she's such a slut... You know what Musume-chan told me?" the other two girls seemed about as curious as she was. "She saw Taro Yamada running out of class 3-2 on lunchtime today..."

 _What..!?_

"Omg! They were SO making out!"

"I wonder if any of the teachers know about this... That ms. Rana is totally gonna get fired for this."

The girls went on about other, irrelevant topics, but she stopped listening already. Taro... with Mida? Maybe they were just rumors... Maybe Musume made that up... But... there was nothing that could deny this. She saw how Taro dismissed her. And he didn't even try to explain why.

Even though she desperately tried to cliing to something that would redeem him, she couldn't. How could he betray her like this...? After everything they'd been through together? Were these all lies..? Did she really mean that little for him?

She wouldn't cry. Not like this. She needed some sort of a distraction...

...her club.

* * *

Shin's POV

He was in the Occult Club when he got a text from Info-chan.

"What happened on Tuesday?" was she.. talking about the Basu sisters?

"What do you mean?"

"I saw you kill both of them, but they're still alive and at school right now. How do you explain this?"

"You wouldn't believe me if I told you."

"No, seriously. My view got really blurry and I couldn't see anything through the static. What did you do?" should he really tell her the truth? They were allies, after all, and she probably wouldn't believe him either way.

"If you really want to know – they turned out to be possessed by demons that made it impossible to kill them."

". . ." was Info-chan's reaction. "What?!" he expected her to act that way. "Fine. If you really don't want to tell me, I'll find out myself."

"You know... I could summon them again for you..."

"No, thank you." he smiled at her reaction. The idea of summoning demons to show them to Info-chan was... tempting, to say the least. "Anyway... that's not what I wanted to talk to you about."

Was something more important happening right now...?

"I'm all ears."

"Something occured today which you can greatly benefit from, if you use the opprotunity." she started. "A new teacher came to teach Oka and Taro's class today. Her name is Mida Rana."

Mida Rana... something told him that teacher would be important.

"What about her?"

"On lunchtime, she told Taro Yamada to stay in the classroom with her. Oka tried to convince him to go with her. They got into an arguement, but in the end, Taro told Oka to let him go and stayed with Mida Rana."

Oka... had a fight with a teacher because of Taro? And he dismissed her to be with that very teacher...? Who was this person and how could they treat Oka like that?

"But that's not it." she continued. "Rumors are spreading quickly."

Rumors...?

"A few girls saw Taro Yamada running out of class 3-2 near the end of lunchtime in a... very... questionable state."

He had to read the messege multiple times to make sure his assumptions were correct. Taro Yamada... was not only disloyal and untrustworthy, but also a pervert. How could Oka ever fall for someone with such obvious flaws?

"What are you suggesting?"

"Oka already knows about the rumors."

Before he could read her text, he heard the door being pushed open, revealing a shaken Oka. She looked like she'd lost all hope and was trying to escape the inevitable collapse of her recent happiness. She looked at him briefly, but took a seat and buried her face in some book. It was clear she wasn't in the mood to talk to anyone. He imagined he wouldn't be very talkative in her situation as well...

"She's in the club right now." he texted Info-chan.

"Oh? So my predictions were right. If Taro fails her, she goes to the last place where she can feel safe. She really is miserable right now..."

"I can see that."

"Anyway... I was about to suggest two ways you can use this situation to your advantage."

"As you can probably tell, Oka lost her trust in Taro after today's events. This could be the best time to get closer with her." get... closer with her...? How extacly was he supposed to do that?

"That's easier said than done."

"That's what I thought you would say. There's another way."

"You can assist my other client in disposing of Mida Rana. Then, she would help you in any way she'd can."

There were many problems he had with this offer... but he was only willing to discuss one of them with Info-chan.

"No."

"What do you mean?"

"I won't help you. And I will not use Oka's weakness to my advantage." he sent her the text, and looked over at Oka. She was too fragile for something like this...

"Why? This is your only chance, can't you see?"

"I would rather have her be with someone else than manipulate her." he answered her, absolutely sure of his decision. "She deserves to choose on her own."

"If I asked you last week, you would've done it without hesitation, right? Why the sudden change?" she was still trying to convince him.

"I would have done it last week. But a lot's changed since then."

"What extacly changed?"

"I know that forcing her to love me is wrong." he answered her.

"'Wrong'? Really? And you don't consider stalking her wrong?"

"No. I didn't harm her."

"Then what about killing the Basu sisters? Or.. trying to?"

"First of all, I did kill them. And no, I don't think that was wrong."

"I really don't understand you." she gave up. Good.

"You will once you'll love someone."

"I don't think that will ever happen." she said, and he could tell she was being honest. "You got me into a bit of trouble with my other client, but... I can handle that."

They didn't exchange any more texts that day. He wondered what would'd happened if he accepted her offer... Not for his sake, of course, but...

If he made a deal with her, and helped her dispose of Mida Rana, her other client would'd helped him. And that meant... he would see the murderer's face and learn their name. He would solve the mystery of their identity.

But there were a few flaws to this plan. The first one was that he would probably have to kill someone again, this time for good, or at least help her kill that teacher. The second flaw – the killer would know _his_ identity as well, so if he wouldn't had helped her, she could kill him. He also considered telling the whole club – six people had more of a chance of surviving than one person. But... that would also create a lot of problems, and eventually, everyone in the club would die as witnesses.

All of that flashed through his head before he denied Info-chan's offer. It was probably the best outcome, anyway...

Oka's POV

Shin was the only one in the club when she came in. But she didn't have the strenth to talk to him that day – too much'd already happened to her.

So she sat on her own in the club, reading a book and trying her best to just disappear. She couldn't help but feel uncomfortable in Shin's presense. When she argued with him yesterday, she made herself clear – she didn't want anything to do with him. And yet... here she was, in her club, instead of being with Taro...

...Taro... _No._ This needed to end right now. She didn't want to keep thinking about him after what happened.

When they all got together to perform the daily ritual, she tried to focus on that dark energy she felt on Monday, the day before Kanon-sensei died. It was gone. She reached out to Shin, very carefully this time, and tried to find anything that would make her less confused about him. Anything.

He pushed her away again. How he managed to sense her was beyond her.

She really should'd given up a long time ago. He didn't want to tell her anything, and his defenses were strong enough not to let her see anything. And what she saw in his mind on Wednesday didn't make much sense to her... She felt like there was something she really needed to know about...

 **Thursday, evening...**

Oka's POV

"Mom! I'm home..." she called out after closing the door to her house behind her. Dropping her bag somewhere on the floor and discarding her shoes along with it, she passed through a short hallway and found herself in the living room. Her mother, Aina Ruto was sitting on a couch there, reading some book when she entered.

"How was school?" she asked her daughter, not looking up from her book. Oka didn't know how to asnwer such a question, so she just shrugged and sat the next to her.

"Is dad home?" she asked her.

"No, he's still at work..." it was normal for her father to be working at this hour... he spent a lot of time away from home. But since he wasn't there... she was free to ask her mother some questions.

"Mom... can I ask you something?" she started, hoping to be polite enough not to scare her away.

"Of course, sweetheart." she put her book away and looked at Oka. She had her silver hair in a braid, uncharacteristically. Oka wondered what she wanted to know the most...

"Do you know a lot about the occult? You believed me yesterday, when I said I was attacked by demons..." she started, noting that her mother seemed a bit... tense at her question.

"I _used to_ know a lot, yes." she was surprised she was answering her normally. "But now... things have changed, Oka... I can't tell you that much."

Aina Ruto was being strangely open and honest with her... did she make up her mind to tell Oka the truth at last...?

"That's okay. Mom... do you remember last Thursday, when I passed out at school...?" she kept asking.

"You spent the whole day in the infirmary, how could I forget?"

"Before that... I saw the auras of everyone at school..." she confessed, hoping her mother would believe her.

"Auras...? Oka, what did they look like?" her mother seeed, once again uncharacteristically curious.

"They were black and white. Mostly white."

"That's right... so you really saw them..." what? Her mother... saw auras as well? How much was she hiding from her extacly?

"That's not what I wanted to ask you about, mom... I... I saw... my own aura..."

"You did?"

"It's... like it doesn't even exist... Why?" she finally asked what she wanted to know. She felt like her aura, a reflection of her soul, would give her all the answers she needed.

"It's just as I expected... Oka, your aura isn't surprising for me..." Aina said slowly. "Or, more accurately, your lack of it..."

 _What?_ All the time she spent trying to research her aura, and she didn't even have one? How was this possible?

"That's impossible... I thought every human has an aura."

Her mother frowned and took a deep breath before replying.

"...That is because, Oka... You aren't human."

* * *

 **Author's notes:** Well then... I'm not going to spoil it. You heard it.

Anyway, the next chapter will be a direct continuation of this conversation, since I felt like it's right to reveal the secrets now, in order to further the plot. You'll see what I mean in a few chapters. I hope you're hyped! I sure am.

Also, there will be Oka's and Inkyu's povs in the next chapter. Maybe something more, depending on how long that turns out.

See you soon~!


	32. Secrets revealed

**Author's notes:** I am SO porud of myself for getting over my "I don't want to write fanfiction" phase. So... here's the long-awaited (I hope) next chapter. Enjoy!

* * *

Oka's POV

"Oka... You aren't human." her mother said in such a low voice, but the few words were enough to shatter everything Oka believed and thought she knew about herself. She... wasn't human? How could that be? Her mind struggled to grasp the meaning of this revealation, but it ended up slipping away from her as the shock of it kept returning. She must'd been frozen, for a very long time with her eyes wide open and her lips parted to say something in response, to doubt that, proove that she was really human... but there was nothing that could deny it. Her lack of an aura, magical abilities, visions, and this strange feeling of living somehow seperately from everyone she knew told her that her mother was speaking the truth. Why would she lie to her...?

But if she wasn't human... who was she? _What_ was she? And why did she end up living a human life if she wasn't one?

"I'm... so sorry, dear..." she felt her mother's arms around her in a protective manner, and she- almost believed it was fine. That nothing'd changed and everything was as it should be... But it wasn't. Was this woman even her mother? What sort of lies had she been feeding her all those years, she wondered... "I should've told you before, but..." she sobbed, and Oka nearly felt sorrry for her. Nearly.

"B-But I thought you would be safer if you didn't know... Happier. I wanted you to live a normal life, to fall in love, have a family and grow old like you deserve to. But my own dreams clouded my vision – you have to know, for your own sake... To truly grasp your potential... and all the possibilities it offers. You should choose on your own what life you want for yourself. And for trying to protect you by blinding you... I am truly sorry."

Her words weren't enough to heal the growing wound in her heart. She lied to her... She was capable of handling herself, if only she knew... Why would she hide this from her...?

She felt like her whole world was falling apart. What was she talking about...? Her _potential_? _Her life?_ She needed to know all of it, but first she wanted to learn the identity of the woman in front of her – the one she called "mother" all her life – could she really had decieved her like this?

"Are you..." she started, but seeing her crying and hugging her in such a motherly way, she couldn't help but feel sorry for her. Even if she wasn't her mother, this woman sacrificed eighteen years of her life to raise her. "Are you really my mother?"

Aina Ruto appeared shocked by the question, but most of all, hurt. Her face dropped when she heard her daughter's words.

"I... should've known you'd ask me about this..." a soft chuckle escaped her lips beetween shaky sobs. Was she... laughing...? "No, I am your mother – and in that regard, nothing has changed." she felt a weight being lifted from her chest. So somethings were right... at least she was who she thought her to be. She felt a new light of hope emerge from the shadows of her broken mind.

"So... if you're human... Why am I not?" she asked, still endlessly confused, but this time ready for even the most unbelievable truth.

"Well... I'm human... but your father is not."

"What?! But dad's..." she started.

"I... mean... your _real_ father."

Her "real father"..? So her mother was truly who she said she was... but the man who lived with them and who she called "father"... wasn't actually who she thought him to be.

"Who is he?" Oka asked, impatiently awaiting the final revealtion. One that would shake her whole world, but leave it in peace at last after it trembled for so long. Aina paused, as if she couldn't force the words out of her mind. Finally, she close her eyes and whispered, but Oka heard the words clearly – how could she not?

"Your father is a demon..."

 _Your father is a demon._

 _Your father is a demon..._

 _MY father is a demon...?_

 _...A demon...?_

She tried to find a confirmation somewhere within the depth of her soul, but somehow knew it was the truth. It all made sense now! All of it...

"So..." she finally asked, her voice trembling, still recovering from the shock. "Am I half-demon...?"

"You are."

"How... did this happen...?" she asked her mother, who shifted uncomfortably in her seat.

"I'll... tell you more about this some other time..." she said, suddenly looking far beyond her staringly seemingly into nothing. Then her face lit up with a shadow of a smile, the happiest she'd seen her in ages. "It's rude to talk about someone who's listening..."

Oka looked behind her instinctively, trying to sense any kind of presense there, anything that could give her a glimpse at the truth. But she only felt something – or someone – slipping out of her reach just before she could sense it. So he was watching them the whole time...

She remembered her mother's words from yesterday morning... That there was something protecting her – that nothing could hurt her as long as she was protected by it...

"Mother... is he the one who protected me from the two demons on Tuesday...?" she asked hesitantly.

"They were weaker, younger, maybe." she admitted. "They weren't a threat to him. But beware of those who are... he won't always be able to save you."

"I'll be careful – I promise." she said, and silently thanked her father, whoever he was, for protecting her whenever she needed it – she would'd been long dead at this pace if it wasn't for him. "Why wouldn't you want to tell me this?"

"I... thought that... you'd either end up like me, become a demon yourself, or die." she rarely heard this much cold honesty from Aina. But she was responsible – and she didn't want power nor immortality anyway.

"You have nothing to worry about, mom..." she reassured her. "I would never use my... power for something stupid or selfish."

"I know, Oka... but I didn't want you to bear this responsibility..."

"Now you don't have to do it on your own." she saw how relieved her mother was after finally letting go of the past. Only then did she realise how hard it must'd been for her... being left on your own with a child nobody could know the origin of at the age of nineteen... She'd never forget her sacrifice.

"Thank you, mom... for everything." she simply stated, knowing it was enough.

Oka hugged the older woman suddenly, warmly, and her mother was finally her own again – she returned. But now they both needed time.

Inkyu's POV

She fell asleep earlier than usual that day. After coming home from school, she felt dizzy all afternoon... Sakyu suggested she may'd been sick, but she felt like her current state would pass soon. She just needed some rest.

Immidiately after losing consciousness, she felt... strange. Even stranger than before.

Everything around her was dark, and she didn't recognise anything. What was this place and why was she here...? Something about the neverending darkness put her on edge...

"Relax, it's just a weird nightmare." she thought to herself.

 _Footsteps...?_

"It's not." she heard a quiet, soft voice from behind her. Immidiately she turned around...

...And was stunned by what she saw.

A girl, who seemed around her age, was standing before her. She wore a simple black dress that didn't cover her shoulders and fell down to her ankles. Her pink, wavy hair seemed familiar, but her face... she looked a lot more mature than Inkyu. Her light blue eyes seemed to stare directly into the girl's soul, bearing a great amount of sorrow in them.

"Listen closely, Inkyu Basu – we do not have much time and there is much I have to tell you." she wouldn't interrupt her even if she could – and she was too speechless to do anything. "Before I tell you the truth, can you promise me something?"

Inkyu nodded, impatient to hear what the hell was happening around her.

"This will all sound very strange to you, but you have to believe me – we may not have another chance to talk like this." she remained silent, urging the bizzare young woman to continue. "I am a demon, an Incubus."

An... _incubus_...? She'd heard the name before somewhere... But she could'd sworn something like that didn't exist... This was _definately_ just a nightmare.

"You have to listen to me – it will make sense eventually, I promise." she paused for a moment and only then did Inkyu realise how close they were standing to eachother – it didn't seem to be unusual for the incubus.

"Who are you? Why are you here?" she asked at last, paniced.

"When me and my sister turned into demons in 1800, we were no longer welcome in the human world. We had to find a way to continue living, and we needed humans to survive. So... with all our remaining strenth, we made a deal with two young girls – we could live inside their bodies, taking control whenever we needed to feed. And it worked... for some time. We moved from mother to daughter, all the way until you two. Have you never wondered why in every generation of your family there were two females around the same age?" _wait.._.. Their family... were the descendants of the humans that first made a deal with the demons two hundread years ago...? How was this possible...? "Do you remember anything that happened on Tuesday on the school rooftop...?"

She told her everything... Sakyu and her were murdered, but the demons inside them prevented them from dying. It didn't make sense at all, but somehow... she believed this girl. There was only one question left unanswered.

"Who tried to kill us?" she asked once the incubus finished talking.

"I think you already suspect his identity... His name is Shin Higaku."

 _Shin...?_ He was the one she saw after school today, the one who looked at her in that strange way... Oh god, now she knew why... _He wanted to kill her again._

"I know what you may be thinking, but... you cannot judge him only by what he did to you and your sister." stramgely, she didn't feel rage towards him for wanting to kill her. She was too afraid to hate him. Hate comes with a certain feeling of superiority, which she had no way of feeling towards him. She would'd been dead by now if it wasn't for the incubus though... "I do not fully grasp his motives, but I know he isn't evil for what he did. And he doesn't deserve to be punished for it."

"Then why are you telling me this?" she was confused, both about how she felt about Shin himself, and about the incubus' intentions. "If you don't want him hurt, why would you tell me all this?"

"It's because... I wanted you to know. It was only right for you to know." she replied mysteriously, but Inkyu felt like this wasn't the whole truth.

"What happened after you two were... summoned?" the incubus shivered suddenly, looking straight into her eyes as if she wanted to force the answer into the younger girl's mind without having to talk about it.

"Having lived through a century without feeding, I was suddenly thrown back into the human world with all its... temptations... I needed someone to give me energy, or I would die of hunger shortly after being summoned. But... I never hurt humans, so I begged him to help me. He..." she paused, looking down, her hand reaching up to her gentle lips. "...He kissed me. He could had hurt me, used me, I really expected him to... Everyone did... but... he only gave me what I needed and asked for, nothing else, but nothing more. He has a good heart, Inkyu, unlike so many others... Do you understand now...?"

She was stunned. If he kissed the incubus, then he technically kissed _her._ And she had no idea... Why was this so complicated...? She could survive dealing with a psychotic murderer, but he wasn't one... Why would he hurt Sakyu and her...?

 _Another complication was that..._

 _...she felt something for him._

She didn't know what, how or why, but the second their eyes met yesterday, she knew he was somehow different. Special. He wanted to kill her, but saved the incubus' life... Why?

"Do you understand, Inkyu...?" she heard the incubus' voice, and realised how silent she'd been for a while.

"Am I in danger...?" the incubus frowned.

"I don't think... I don't think you are, as long as he doesn't suspect you know of this. He's rational. He wouldn't kill you again for no reason." _'for no reason'_... that wasn't very reassuring. "You're safe for now."

Suddenly, her vision went blurry, and she saw the incubus' hand reaching out to her.

 _"Goodbye, Inkyu Basu... We may not meet again. Wake up now."_

* * *

 **Author's notes:** Lots of juicy story in this chapter...

Anyway, writing Aina's confession of sorts felt nice because of how much she was keeping from literally everyone all this time - I think we'll have more scenes like this here... I won't say for which characters.

Also, did you see the _'who's Oka's real father?'_ twist coming? I tried to make it not too obvious, but kind of predictable if you were looking into the details. Honestly, I created that plot twist (and other backstory stuff you don't even know of yet) right after writing the very first chapter. So it's not like I don't think the story through - I do, with many chapters ahead as you can see.

About the Inkyu bit, there's not really any new information aside from the demons' backstory which isn't that important. but still - I like that subplot. I felt like if the incubus was able to contact Inkyu somehow, she would want to tell her that - so, not a very informative scene, but kind of important for Inkyu's character, which I asked you about last time I believe and since there was generally some support for her, I thought I'd make this subplot a bit longer as I previously imagined it.

Share your thoughts and reactions in reviews, have a nice day, and try to wait patiently for the next chapter.

 _See you~!_


	33. Looking past differences

**Author's notes:** I got sick so I have a lot of free time. Yay...?

In this chapter, we finally move on to Friday and generally lots of buildup for the finale of the 2nd week. Enjoy!

* * *

 **Friday, morning...**

Oka's POV

Walking to school, she felt somehow above all her problems that day. Taro? Mida Rana...? What were they compared to what she learned yesterday? She was _half-demon_. And she wasn't hesitant to admit how much better that made her feel about herself. Everything made sense now, and the years she spent studying the occult had a purpose. Now she finally understood... and nothing would take away her satisfaction.

Suddenly, she heard a familiar voice calling her name. Taro...

"Hey..." he approached her immidiately, seeming oblivious to how distantly she was acting towards him. "Sorry about yesterday, I have no idea what came over me..."

She wasn't listening to him. She wouldn't let him ruin today for her. But she still felt so small compared to him... _she had to run._ Slowly moving past him, she started walking. He followed her.

"You're not.. angry with me for what happened yesterday, right...?" she didn't say a word. She was almost out of the locker area.

His hand on her shoulder stopped her.

"What's wrong with you today? Did something happen...?" she turned around and pushed his hand away. She needed space.

"Yes." she spat out, her legs tense and eager to flee from this nonsense. "You did. You and your teacher... I know what happened." she said, even though she wasn't sure. If he regretted anything, he would be affected. If he didn't, he still had to explain himself.

"What...?" his eyes widened in shock suddenly, and she took another step back, already out of his reach but still unable to move. "No, it's not what you think-!"

"I don't care." she muttered angrily as she turned around and fled at last.

Shin's POV

 _"Guess what I just saw in the locker room~"_ Info-chan just texted him on his way to school.

 _"A fight beetween Oka and Taro Yamada...?"_ he replied.

 _"Precisely. Are you still not willing to use that to your advantage? Their relationship is falling apart, and you're still waiting for a miracle."_ she taunted.

 _"I'm not making anymore deals with your other client."_ he texted as he approached the school.

 _"Let me know once you change your mind."_

Taro's POV

To say he was shook would be a huge understatement.

Just two days ago, he hugged her and she said she trusted him. Were these really just words? Was her trust in him so easily broken? He had plans to tell her how he felt... But he didn't know if it would change anything at this point.

How did she learn of the rumors anyway...? Was it really that obvious? What better choice could he'd made yesterday? He would get in trouble if he disobeyed a teacher... and honestly, was it really such a big deal? She manipulated him as well – none of it was his fault. Oka was just overreacting, he was sure of that. And from what he knew, nobody cared about her as much as he did. She couldn't stand being alone – she would come back to him sooner or later, and beg him to forgive her. He knew she would. There was no-one more capable of taking care of her – and he loved her, he wanted her to be happy. Sadly, she would have to learn to trust him the hard way.

 _He wouldn't let her leave him like the others had..._

Oka's POV

Running away from Taro, she found herself back in the club. She was the first one to arrive, so, deciding to take advantage of the peaceful silence of the clubroom, she sat in the middle of the pentagram and focused.

Her legs crossed, she let her head fall onto her hands as she thought about what just happened. She felt like she needed someone to guide her, some passive observer that could shed some light onto her situation... But who? Everything was so confusing for her, she loved Taro, but everything got so complicated... Why did Mida Rana have to ruin everything...? She remembered how he hugged her on Wednesday, when she was terrified by what she saw in Shin's mind. He comforted her. Said he would protect her and take care of her – she needed that. No matter how powerful she could be, she wasn't strong enough to use her potential without someone else to support her. Taro couldn't possibly understand her struggle... but he could help.

A presense at the border of her consciousness before she heard the door open and lost her focus.

"-oh! Sorry..." she heard Supana Churu's voice. Good god, that girl was a miracle – always in the right place.

"Nothing to worry about – I needed someone to talk to. Sit down." she gestured her to sit on the pentagram rug next to her.

"So..." she heard Supana's unshakable cheerfulness echo in her voice, like usual. "What did you want to talk about?"

How should she say that...? She didn't really feel like giving Supana all the details, but she needed her opinion...

"How would you feel..." she started, picking her words carefully. "If someone you liked betrayed you...?"

Supana's POV

 _What?_

What kind of question was that...? Could she possibly know what happened beetween her and Kokuma? She wanted to keep it a secret, at least until she'd make up her mind... was it that obvious?

"Oh my god! I'm sorry-" she started rambling, moving her hands rapidly in the air for emphasis. "-I didn't mean to make it look like that! I need time..."

Oka was silent, but her face was blank. It was the face of someone who...

 _..._

 _...Was about to laugh?_

"What's so funny?" Oka never acted that way. She really must'd been having a bad day.

"It's just that..." she inhaled quickly, trying to stop laughing. "I think we're talking about different things."

Oh. _OH. NOW it made sense._

"It seems like something is bothering you, though... Do you want to talk about it?" recovering quickly from her laughing fit (an ability Supana was sadly not blessed with), Oka's face became serious again.

"Well... I assumed you knew about that already..." she shifted a bit. "But I guess there's no point hiding it any longer..."

She took a deep breath. Maybe all she needed was to talk to someone trustworthy... it couldn't be that bad.

 _"Kokuma has a crush on me and I have no idea what to do because oh my god what if she thinks I don't care about her we're friends afterall and I'm abandoning her but I don't know what to do and I need to think this through before I give her an answer and she's so impatent but I get that and I feel bad for her but I don't know if that's really what I want"_ she spat out at an impossible speed.

"Kokuma... has a crush on you...?" Oka repeated slowly. She nodded. What if she made a mistake? What if- "I think you should do whatever you feel is right. You care about her, right?"

 _What...?_ The way she talked about it made Supana feel a wave of relief as she realised Oka didn't consider it weird or wrong for a girl to like another girl. At least that was out of the way...

"I do care about her, but... I'm not sure if it's like _that_."

Oka's POV

"I get it." she pondered the problem for a bit. "I could try to talk to Kokuma about it if you want..."

"About what?" they heard another voice and the door opening. The slightly melancholic tone was unmistakable – Kokuma just entered the room. She saw Supana turn towards her with nearly fear... people shouldn't inspire fear in their loved ones...

She looked at Supana and made a choice before anything else could happen.

Standing up, she looked Kokuma straight in the face:

"I know you like Supana." both of the girls' reactions at that moment were a mixture of confusion and anxiety, but Oka didn't want them to have to live a lie. She'd had enough of the ridiculous nonsense of relationships – if she could at least make it easier for someone else, she would. And besides, that day she was feeled with some strange courage – the sense she could do everything and the desire to do good. To snap out of her passive state and finally help other people. And it was just what she was doing.

"Oka-!" Supana nearly jumped to her side.

"I see..." Kokuma said slowly, her calm eyes moving beetween both her clubmates.

"And I think you shouldn't be afraid of that. Supana..." she turned to the younger girl to adress her. "Now you know at least I accept it. I hope that makes you feel better." what was she even doing...? She had no idea, but felt like whatever she was saying, she was doing something right. She didn't mean to pressure them into a relationship, but if Supana liked Kokuma back, she shouldn't be afraid of other students pressuring them. She should do whatever made her happy.

"Thank you, Oka" Kokuma broke the silence first. Supana was still a bit shook. Oka decided to move out of their way and let them discuss all that on their own. She made a difference, but she wouldn't interfere with their relationship anymore.

Feeling accomplished through something as simple as this, she left the clubroom and headed upstairs to her classroom.

* * *

 **Friday, classtime**

She couldn't help but feel like Taro was watching her in class... She cursed the school for placing their desks next to eachother.

Mida Rana's lecture was quite boring... she was making very little notes, and focused on drawing little stars at the last page of her notebook. A sky full of bright, shining stars... that's where she wanted to run away to at that moment. Far away from Taro, and his perverted teacher... All of that. She was spacing out again, but she didn't care.

She kept coming back to what she did in the morning, wondering if she really helped Supana... If Kokuma really cared about her, which she obviously did, she wouldn't pressure her too much... She believed Kokuma loved Supana and wanted the best for her.

And what about her? Did Taro really know what was best for her...? And could he give it to her, despite everything? Maybe... she could forgive him what happened yesterday... if only he'd give her what she needed.

* * *

 **Author's notes:** Okay, that was all written in under two hours... the heck...?

Anyway, hope you enjoyed the chapter, I tried to progress many of the subplots in this since I realised I've been neglecting Supana x Kokuma and I had plans for them so... couldn't really postpone that until the third week. Also, I had to move things around a bit in time because of the Supana x Kokuma thing, but worry not - the next chapter should be enjoyable for you.

 **See you soon!**

 _~Navypink_


	34. Could it be?

**Author's notes:** Sorry for the super long wait... I was mainly busy with school, and when I wasn't studying, I was working on visual novels, and when I did all that I was too sick of work of any kind to write fanfiction. I participated in the student council art contest over christmas break. Also, I _do_ have a social life which keeps me a bit more busy.

Anyway, I'm sure if you haven't guessed that yet you just want to read the fanfiction, not hear my rants. Enjoy the chapter!

* * *

 **Friday, after school...**

Oka's POV

She didn't want to see Taro again that day. She wasn't sure which one of them was at fault, but either way she needed space. She spent lunchtime with Kokuma in the club – strangely, Supana was abscent. Maybe she was busy with schoolwork or simply hanging out with her classmates.

After school Oka studied in the library, then headed home shortly afterwards.

Pink petals falling everywhere around her as she went out of the school, she took a deep breath, feeling a certain sense of accomplishment after finishing another crazy week at school.

She close her eyes slowly and recalled everything that happened this week. On Monday, the Basu sisters poured water on her... A light blush covered her pale cheeks when she recalled meeting Taro then, with her clothes soaked. What... nearly happened beetween them then...? They were so close... And he just left.

She told him "no" for the first time later that day... And he wanted to know why she avoided him since Friday.

They didn't see eachother at all on Tuesday, she stayed in her club all day... Then the demons afterschool... she wished she could talk to someone about it...

On Wednesday, she had another nightmare. She spoke to her mother, but she was cryptic as always... Then whatever happened with Shin... it was insane. She seriously wanted nothing to do with her half-demonhood and everything connected to it... She told Taro about how she felt, and it didn't matter that much why she felt that way, only that he was close to her and he would help her no matter what. She wondered... if he forgave her so easily then, could he do it again now...? No, why would she think that? He betrayed her and left her alone for that... slutty teacher. She couldn't come back to him, unless he had a really good excuse for what he'd done – and she doubted he did.

 _Sadly, she thought that her refusal hurt her more than it did him... Why was it so difficult to just be happy with someone she... loved?_

Supana's POV

She wasn't sure what to think about what Oka said before... It was good to know that she supported her and Kokuma's... possible relationship? But she felt a bit pressured. She knew Oka didn't mean to make her more anxious than she already was, since she was always so considerate and kind to her. She couldn't deny it, she was conflicted about Kokuma more than ever. Did she really think of her as something more than a friend...?

Walking out of the school, she spotted Oka leaving but decided not to approach her. A moment later she heard footsteps from behind her, and...

"'sup?" she saw Kokuma catching up to her.

"...Hi." the feeling of awkwardness appeared to be mutual? "Listen, about today and... all of it." Kokuma started, and she listened in silence. Their recent conversations always put her on edge, and she didn't know why – maybe she expected her to try something weird. "I'm sorry for trying to rush it. I should have been more patient with you."

 _Oh. Well that's a surprise..._

"You _were_ a bit... pushy." she replied, still feeling a bit uncomfortable talking to her like this.

"Yeah.."

"...heh." the half-ironic laughter was the only sound she could make in her current state.

"Wait, you're not mad at me?"

"Why would I be...? Sure, it was awkward and weird as hell, but we're still friends, right?" she smiled. Gay or not, Kokuma was her dearest friend and she cared for her a lot.

Kokuma's POV

"We... are?" it'd been a while since she felt this relieved from hearing something. Supana still thought they were friends... so there was still hope. She knew some people would be disappointed at being called "friends" with someone they liked, but for her it was more than enough. Seeing how Supana reacted to her confession, she realised she acted way too fast. But she was convinced she liked her as well...

She was stupid then. She'd learned her lesson about being patient, just like with everything else in her life.

Still, walking with Supana, she felt completely speechless. That girl was far beyond her comprehension, and that's what she loved most about her – forcing her to be with her and making her feel insecure because of her confession took that charm away from her. Now, it was finally back. She would have to make sure Supana would never lose her spark because of her actions again.

Since she couldn't bring herself to talk, she smiled her most genuine smile in a while, trying to convey all she felt without having to put it into words – her gratitude for being forgiven so easily, her admiration for Supana, and her unbreakable love for the girl. She needed to remember all of these feelings whenever she thought about their relationship.

Supana's POV

When Kokuma smiled at her, it wasn't some half-sincere smirk or anything of the sort, it was an honest sign of her appreciation of her and happiness. She herself felt happy that she made her friend smile like that at her one more time. It was just like nothing ever happened beetween them...

She wondered... _would her smile remain as genuine and warm if she accepted her feelings for her...?_ Or would it be even more charming than it was now...?

She found herself smiling back at her abscently, her lips moving on their own as they stopped walking.

Kokuma's POV

It took her a moment to realise what was happening... they stopped, the pink cherry trees around them, hidden in their shadows, only the most gentle of sunlight reaching them. Supana was looking at her without a word, as if they both froze, waiting for something to happen.

Could it be...? Was it the time?

"Supana..." she breathed. She needed something to happen, some clue, some word, something she could latch onto...

But the girl she loved was as silent as her... Was she.. nervous?

Her silence was unbearable as they looked into eachother's eyes, both unsure of what will happen next.

Supana's POV

Why did they stop? Why was Kokuma looking at her like this? And...

 _Why did she find herself melting under her gaze...?_

What was happening? _No, it couldn't be..._ Her mind refused to believe what was happening, but her body was deaf to its yells. She waited.

If Kokuma did something now, she wasn't sure how she would react... _But what exactly could she do...?_ She had no idea, and that's what terrified her the most.

A storm of voices fighting for dominance in her head, until one, loudest of them all, emerged.

 **No. This has to stop.**

 **You can't – it's not right.**

 _I can't..._ She repeated in her thoughts as if in a trance.

 _ **Can't I...?**_

* * *

 _It's not right. It's not right..._

"It's not right, damnit!" she broke, and before she realised she said it out loud, Kokuma already heard her.

Kokuma's POV

Why now...?

She was powerless to stop Supana when she ran away, just like a week before when she confessed to her.

 _How could she hurt her like this again...? Give her hope and then leave her with a burning wound in her very soul – the sould that she felt like was ripped apart just then._

 **Again.**

* * *

 **Author's notes:** Finally the second week is finished... Phew... it's been like, a year since I wrote Monday. Also, I decided to be a good author and remind you of the major events over this week in the story. I actually wrote a schedule for the whole story, and it turned out 6 weeks long... Four more years to finish at this rate...? Four more years of this story for you guys, I guess.

Also, would you like me to compile a summary of the previous events since the very beginning, in all subplots as the next chapter? I think it would be good for some people ( _I'm looking at you, Muchino..._ ) and a good thing to do before the start of next week, when things get quite intense and we'll finish the warmup phase at last.

Are you guys hyped for next week?

See you soon~


	35. Previously

_**Previously, on Lonely Souls...**_

 **Week I**

 **One Monday** , Oka Ruto meets Taro Yamada, her classmate, on her way to school. She learns that his dear friend, Kokona, rumored to have a crush on him, has gone missing recently. Choosing to skip her club activities that day to spend time with him, and they form a bond. Meanwhile, Shin, her clubmate and friend, watches them, envious of Taro and Oka's feelings for him.

Info-chan contacts Shin soon afterwards to make a deal with him – she will give him information about Oka's whereabouts and her relationship with Taro, claiming it will benefit one of her other clients. Shin agrees.

Oka and Taro spend **Tuesday** together.

 **Wednesday** at night, Oka has a nightmare that she assumes to be a vision of her death. She doesn't trust Shin enough to tell him about it, and she knows Taro won't believe her if she tells him the truth. She talks to Taro about her feelings, and he comforts her by hugging her as she cries. Info-chan sends video footage of the whole scene to Shin.

After school, the Basu sister whom Oka stalked daily, bully her. Fourtunately, Taro appears to save her and they walk home together.

On **Thursday** , Oka's vision from before comes true – she is attacked by demonic hands and has a vision of past murders in their school. She also learns the true reason why Kokona went missing – she's dead. Shin finds her unconsious in the occult club room and brings her to the nurse's office

Upon waking up, Oka finds herself in the newly hired Muja Kina's office with Taro, who she assumes brought her there. She later decides to find out more about her visions, and goes to her club, where she encounters Shin – she tells him about the murders, and sees his dark aura.

On **Friday** , Oka wants to learn more about her vision from the day before, so she goes to her club again. On lunchtime that day, Taro tries to find out why she's been avoiding him, but she can't tell him about the murders. When she has to leave him without an explaination, she realises how much she really needs him and that _she loves him._

Later that day, Muja is killed by the serial killer who killed Kokona and her body is found.

 **Week II**

 **On Monday** the next week, the serial killer convinces the Basu sisters to pour water on Oka to give her the opprotunity for an easier murder. Her plan fails, but on her way to the locker room, Oka, soaked in water, runs into Taro. She isn't sure what transpires beetween them then.

Shin soon learns about what the Basu sisters have done and begins to plot their murder for how they hurt Oka. His plans align with the serial killer's, as she wants to eliminate Kaho Kanon, a teacher who suspects Muja Kina was murdered.

Meanwhile, Supana and Kokuma chat in the occult club. Kokuma reveals that she likes girls.

Taro finds Oka on her way to her club and stops her. He believes whatever she's doing in secret is wrong and should be stopped for her own good. She refuses and runs away from him to her club.

After school, Kokuma confesses her feelings for Supana.

Info-chan plots tomorrow's murders of Kaho Kanon and the Basu sisters.

 **On Tuesday,** Oka is alone in her club again. Taro, alone as well, realises he loves her and misses her.

Meanwhile, Shin begins his plan to murder the Basu sisters with Info-chan's guidance. He steals a katana from the headmaster's office, leaves it for the serial killer to find, she kills Kaho Kanon and then leaves the katana for him on the rooftop.

After school, the Basu sisters come to the rooftop where Shin kills them both. However, Sakyu isn't killed and is revelaed to be a succubus, which she turns into and attacks Shin. He's powerless to stop her. Inkyu Basu turns into an incubus and her sister lets her feed on Shin. They kiss, but the Incubus is stopped by the Succubus, who sees Oka on the far end of the rooftop. Both demons move to attack her.

A sudden burst of power from Oka saves her from the demons and turns them back into humans as she runs away from school, terrified.

 **On Wednesday night,** Oka has another vision – she sees herself as a demon, a goddess even. She talks to her mother about it, who seems to know more than she claims to.

At school, Oka is ripped beetween dimensions until she leaves her body and finds that she's capable of reading Shin's thoughts. He pushes her away and sees her memories of Taro and her feelings for him. He's devastated, which enables her to read his mind. She learns about everything, but can't make sense of what happened the day before. She doesn't know he killed the Basu sisters, only that he was there. She's terrified of him and doesn't want anything to do with him.

On lunchtime, she comes back to Taro who hugs her once again and comforts her.

Afterschool, Oka confronts Shin on her way home about what she saw in his mind.

Meanwhile, Supana feels pressured by Kokuma's recent confession since she doesn't know if she feels the same way about her.

 **On Thursday,** a new teacher arrives at school as a substitue for Kaho Kanon – Mida Rana. She openly flirts with students in class and on lunchtime tells Taro to stay with her. Despite Oka's resistance, he obeys her and Oka is forced to leave the classroom and spend the break alone.

Mida Rana seduces Taro and they make out in the classroom. He realises what they're doing is wrong at the last moment and runs out of the classroom and away from ms. Rana.

Shin keeps running into the Basu sisters and rethinking his previous actions. He also notices that the younger girl reminds him of the Incubus whom he's kissed. Inkyu decides to learn the truth about what happened to her and her sister.

Oka quickly learns of the rumors surrounding ms. Rana and Taro. She feels betrayed. Info-chan tries to get Shin to use the opprotunity to get close to her, but he refuses to take advantage of her weak state.

After school, Oka confronts her mother again about the paranormal, and learns that she's not actually a human – her real father is a demon whom her mother met when she was her age. Oka doesn't know how to deal with this reveal, but comforts her mother and reassures her that she'll be careful with her powers.

At night, the Incubus appears in Inkyu's dream and tells her everything that happened on Tuesday – how Shin killed her and her sister, but then helped her. Inkyu realises she has feelings for Shin.

 **Friday** begins with Oka's fight with Taro about Mida. He claims he's done nothing wrong, and what Oka's heard are baseless rumors, but she doesn't believe him. She goes to her club again and talks to Supana about her relationship with Kokuma.

Supana and Kokuma meet afterschool and discuss their relationship. Kokuma apologises for trying to rush things, and Supana forgives her. Before they can make up their minds about eachother, Supana panics and runs away.

 **And here are the thirty four chapters of this story summarized for your reading pleasure. I hope this helps you get back on track and enjoy the story like you did before, with regular updates.**

* * *

 **Here's a small bonus...**

 **Sunday, night...**

?'s POV

She'd had quite a productive weekend. Turning her computer off and going to sleep at last at 2:00 AM, she thought her strategy through once again.

Since Thursday, she'd been spreading rumors about that slut of a teacher, Mida Rana. She dared _touch_ her senpai! _She nearly raped him-!_

Ayano felt her rage reignited at the thought os that whore... Who did she think she was? Her sweetest, purest senpai... he couldn't protect himself when she threw herself at him like that! He was too precious and kind to defy even that disgusting woman. _Oh, how much she craved to show her her hatred... slam her head on that table where she hurt him, drive a knife through her giant, fake breasts..._ But she couldn't.

She sighed. Once everything was in order, she could take care of him forever~ Not like these sluts who only wanted to use him.

 _Speaking of sluts..._

Her plan to expose Mida's crimes against her senpai was brilliant in its simplicity. No-one could deny what happened, but if it was necessary she had a few panty shots ready to pay for the whole footage of what happened. She had it all covered, as always before. Her previous... failures... with Oka would come to an end soon with this one, swift victory.

Once the teachers know what happened, Mida Rana would be fired immidiately. But that was only half of her success.

She saw how much of an ungrateful bitch Oka Ruto was. She got to spend time with her senpai whenever she wanted, no matter how much she hurt and offended him... He _hugged her_ even. And she dared get angry with him? She couldn't possibly comprehend how she could find excuses to do it. It would seem she didn't love him at all...

On Thursday, when she heard about the rumors for the first time, she acted like she had no idea what happened. Like senpai was responsible for all of it. She hid in her stupid club afterwards... she really was pathetic. And on Friday, she yelled at him. She dared _raise her voice_ in his sacred presence. It was unforgivable, but... it worked in her favor. If she convinced everyone the rumors about Rana were true, the whore would be fired, and the witch dealt with in no time.

 _She couldn't contain her laughter._

Everything was going exactly as she planned it...

* * *

 **Author's notes:** I thought we haven't checked on ? in a while, so there you go - she's as busy as always.

See you soon!

 _~Navypink_


End file.
